The third time around.
by Mojenica
Summary: Just what happens when the great-grandchildren of Ardeth Bay and the O'Connell's join forces to stop the third reawakeningof Imhotep? Read and find out.
1. The great-grandchildren

Disclamer:You know the drill, I dont own any of the characters from the mummy. Though, I only really use two of them. Any way, I do own all the other characters, but would be happy to share, if you would just let me know you want to use any of them.   
  
Note: This is....yet another story from me. I love the Med-jai, can you tell? I really would like to know how you all like it, so I will know to post the rest of the story. Um, I will soon be working on "The Mummy" from Ardeths POV, so expect that soon. But since I am in school, I have less time to write now. Oh well.   
Anyway, enjoy this little story. It gets better as it goes along. Lots of silly things and a neet battle scene. Look out for my Ardeth POV story. Lime jello, and thanks for all. Maggi  
PS, if you have read my other stories, you know I SUCK at grammar and spelling. So, if you see any mistakes, just ignore them. I tried my hardest to keep the mistakes on a small scale, but sometimes, some just slip through. Ya know? ;)  
  
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The sun beat down on the quiet desert. Casting its bitterly hot rays on all, offering shade only behind large sand dunes and other protruding natural landmarks. On top of one such hill, a large black horse stood near the edge, both it and it's rider looking down at the valley below.   
  
The chieftain on the Med-jai sat on top the horse, lime green eyes scanning the bleak desert, until they landed on a party of two. Making their way towards the end of the valley, in search for the lost city of the dead. The warrior sat tall on the horse, unnoticed by the travelers, clean black robes hugging the nicely built body. A turban covering the shoulder length dark brown hair, offering a bit of coolness from the heat of the sun. Tattoos on the cheeks showing up brightly, strange puzzle like figures from a language unknown to all except the Med-jai. The string of tattoos on the forehead covered up by the dark turban, also in the unknown language. And the pointed tattoos on the hands also showing up bright, pointing towards the reigns that were being held. Lips pursed in an amused smile, for it had been a long time since anyone dared to find Humanaptra. Yet, there was something different about this Med-jai chieftain, something very different.   
  
For this Med-jai was a woman. Ameera Bay watched as the two male figures made there way through the valley. From her distance, she could see one was tall and blond and the other was short. The blond seemed to know where he was going, and he looked like he had a map in his hands. The two talked of something, but Ameera could not hear what the words were. There was something strangely familiar about the blond man.   
  
"Ameera!" Came a thick voice, causing her to turn her head. Her second in command, Omar, rode up to where she was sitting, giving her a small bow of the head.   
"Hello cousin." She said, her voice feminine but strong. Her eyes squinted as he stopped next to her.   
"What do we have here?" Omar said as his eyes fell on the two small dots that were the travelers.   
"I believe they are the first to come to the city in a very long time. One of them, a blond man, seems to know his way very well. He also seems to have a map. Although I don't know where he could have gotten it, maps to the city stop being sold when my father was king."  
  
"Must be an old one then. You know how the English are with their 'antiques'. They love anything older then them self's."  
"The blond…he is familiar."  
  
"In what way?" Omar looked at his cousin, dark brown eyes shining. He was a tall man, about six foot six. Taller then most of the other warriors of the Med-jai, but there were still a few who looked at him in the eye. His dark brown hair was cut short and covered by a turban of his own. His tattoos not that much different from hers. He was proud to be the second in command to the first female Med-jai chieftain. They were both Bay's, and proud to be.   
  
"I just know him…somehow. Let us wait until they reach the city let them think they are unnoticed. Then we will go in. There are only two of them, I think both you and I can scare them away."  
"As you wish, my lady."  
  
~~  
"My god man, if you EVER bring me out here again, one of us is going to die." The short man said, bringing his arms across his forehead, wiping the sweat off his body.   
"Honestly Robert, you should really stop complaining. How often do you get the chance to explore such a place in such a way?" The blonde's voice held a light accent.   
"Never, and I bloody well like it that way, if you don't mind."   
  
The blond sighed. It seemed that not everyone could appreciate the beauty of the desert like he could. But then again, a love for this place ran in his blood. He was about six foot three, as most men in his family were his blond hairs short and spiked, but hidden under the large explorer hat he had just placed on his head. His hazel eyes, which held a certain sparkle, scanned the desert ahead of them. This was how his ancestors had done it, and by God, that was how he was going to do it was well.   
  
Robert, on the other hand, did not have a love for the desert or ancestors who had a love for it either. In fact, this was the first time any one from his family had left London in a long time. He was short compared to his friend, about five foot nine. His light brown hair also short and spiked slightly bleached at the ends. And it too was covered by an explorer's hat. Gray eyes squinting, even from behind the dark sunglasses he wore.   
  
"Nick O'Connell, your insane." He said, leaning over his camel and pulling up a canteen.   
"Indeed I am, Robert, but I had to come out here. Besides, it will give me a chance to catch up on old times with the Med-jai. My family goes way back with them, you know."  
"Yes, I know. Your great-grandparents met them back in the thirties and had some big adventure with them…or something long those lines. And now every one from your family will forever be excepted into this Bedouin tribe of warriors who, by the way, are also insane."  
  
"Why are they insane?" Nick asked, turning to Robert.   
"Because it is 1999, and it is time that they picked up, moved out of the desert, and joined the rest of us in normal society."  
"You would be amazed how well they do out here man, these people are not idiots. They know what they are doing, and they are very happy with it."  
Robert laughed. "Yeah, well, they and you are still insane. Can't see why you love this blasted place so much. It's too damn hot out here."  
"I would much rather be hot then cold, thank you very much."  
  
"Whatever." Robert reached into a small bag and pulled out a portable CD player and put the headphones on, letting the music flow through his ears. Nick sighed. When he asked his best friend to join him on the trip, he had hoped that he would enjoy it, but Robert didn't seem to, maybe he would when they got to Humanaptra. Nick looked down at the map in his hands; it was a copy of the map made by his great-grandfather, Rick O'Connell. A prized possession in the O'Connell family, and he would not risk bringing it out of the safe it was in. Rick, Evelyn, and Alex O'Connell were his heroes. And he was lucky enough to meet his great-grandparents before their deaths, when he was nine. His grandpa, the original Alex O'Connell loved his grandson very much, and spent much time with him. Telling him stories about his parents and their adventures. He was also lucky to meet Jonathan Carnahan and Ardeth Bay, his other heroes.   
  
The life the five had lead was so amazing to young Nick, who forced his grandpa to tell him the stories over and over again. Listening to them, dreaming about them, loving every word that left his beloved grandpa's lips. His parents could never really understand his obsession with the stories. Neither of them believed them to be true. But in all of Nick's heart, he knew they were.   
Now he was on his way to the very city of the dead, and he could not wait to get there. Nor could he wait to meet with the Med-jai, for he had something very important to tell them and it concerned the creature himself, Imhotep.   
  
It took them another, silent, hour to get to the city, and as they approached, Nick's eyes lit up and became wide. He was finally at Humanaptra!  
"Oh my god! I am finally here! I have been waiting my whole damn life to get to this very place!" He said as he jumped off his camel.   
  
"Looks like a big…whole in the ground to me." Robert said, looking around.   
"Yeah…on top…but there is a whole city down there just waiting for me to explore it!"  
"I thought we came here to tell those Bedouin's something."  
"They have a name, Robert, they are the Med-jai. And we are here to tell them something, but I want to explore down there a little bit first!"  
  
"If you have to talk to them, why didn't you just go to their camp?" Robert hopped off his camel.   
"Because…I don't know how to get there. It was the one thing that Rick DIDN'T make a map off. They come to ward off any and all who come here…so it was the only way I could think of getting to them."   
"You know, man, it looks like someone already got here." Robert walked over to a large deep hole in the ground.   
"It doesn't look fresh, look at the footprints around it…they are old. Who ever it was, left a while ago, we are lucky they opened it up for us."  
Nick stuck his head in the hole and looked around, but in the dark, he could not see anything. With a sigh, he stood back up.   
  
"You going to go down there?" Robert asked.   
"No, I wouldn't trust it with out some better light. I don't want scarabs to get to me."  
"Scarabs?"  
"Man eating bugs. There are supposed to be a lot of them down there…and I wouldn't want to chance it. Not yet, at least."  
"Not yet? Are you out of your mind! There is no way I am letting you go down into a dark hole where there are man eating bugs!"  
  
"Relax, will ya? I know what I am doing here."  
"Look, just because your relatives got through this place alive, doesn't mean you are going to."  
"Robert, I know you don't like being out here, but there is nothing that is going to stop me from going down there and looking around. I want to see what they saw. I want to be where they were! This place is my history!"  
"Dude, I am not letting you go down there!"  
"You're not going to stop me!"  
"Don't go down there!"  
  
"I would listen to your friend, he is right, you know." Came a strong female voice from behind them. Both men turned and stared up at Ameera and Omar. Sitting high and proud on their horses.   
"In fact, I think it would be good if you both left this place right now. There is nothing for you to find except sand and blood."  
Nick smiled brightly. The Med-jai had come to them. He bowed his head in respect, his eyes locked on Ameera and his smile never fading.   
  
"Your highness, it is an honor to be in your presence again."  
Ameera looked at the Englishman puzzled, then turned to Omar, who was just as puzzled.   
"You act as though you know me, and as though we have met. Who are you, Englishman?"   
"My lady, I am Nick O'Connell…"  
"O'Connell you say?" She said cutting him off, "An O'Connell? Tell me, you are the relative of those who went up against the creature so long ago? Those who LET the creature out so long ago? Tell me, O'Connell…you should know, better then anyone, that you shouldn't be here. But if your ancestors never listened, why should you?"  
Even Med-jai had the right to be cynical.   
  
"Lady Ameera, those of which you speak of are indeed my family."  
"Oh yes…I remember now. Tell me, then, Mr. O'Connell, why are you here?"  
"I have come to tell you of a plan to raise the creature himself. A plan set forth by collages of mine back in London."  
"If they are in London, then they can not really raise the creature, can they?"  
"No, my lady, they are on their way to Ahm Shere."  
  
A low gasp came out of the two warriors. "And what proof do you have of this?" Omar said, speaking for the first time.   
"These men…they are ruthless and greedy. They found out about the story of the creature. They believe that if they bring him back, he will give them riches and power."  
"And how did they find out about the story?"  
Nick looked down and said softly. "From me."  
  
"From you? Why does that not surprise me…?" Ameera said, staring the man down.   
"They got me really drunk one night and forced the story out of me, that's how. Then they stole the map to Ahm Shere. That is where they are headed right now, to reawake the creature."  
Ameera and Omar looked at each other, a conversation passing between their eyes. Was it true? Could it really be? The leader Bay turned her attention to Nick.   
"How do we know this is true?"  
"My lady, I would not lie to you about such things. Believe it, I beg of you. These men will not stand down easily."  
  
"Do you think he is telling the truth?" Omar asked, in Arabic, as he leaned over to her.   
"I do not know. I feel we have good reason to believe him, knowing his families past history. But the creature was sent to the underworld the last time he faced the O'Connell's. How could they possibly bring him back?"  
"We do not understand all that is in the book of the dead, and if they do…I think we should take this seriously Ameera. I don't feel that these men are lying to us."   
  
She looked them over, they didn't seem to be lying to them…but you could never be too careful. Ameera's eyes fell on Nick, he was dashingly handsome. She shook the thought out of her mind.   
"We should take them back with us, we don't want them wondering around this place alone. You know how they have a sense for trouble. We will take them to the elders and discuss it with them." She said, in Arabic, before switching over to English. "Get your things together, you are coming back with us."  
  
Nick beamed; he could barely hide his excitement. He jumped up on his camel and beckoned Robert to follow. He did.   
"Oh, by the way, This is Robert Danna, a good friend of mine." He indicated Robert, who was trying to get his camel to stand up.   
"A pleasure, this is my second in command, Omar Bay." She smiled at Nick, which made him go weak in the knees. She was one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen. "You will follow us to our camp, and we will talk this all over with the elders."  
"Wonderful."  
  
As they rode out of the city of the dead, Nick looked back in sadness. He wanted to stay and explore it so badly, but he knew that adventure was coming his way soon.   
  
~~  
It took them just under two hours to reach the Med-jai City, and it was just how Nick had remembered it. When he was ten, he was brought here for a funeral, so the air over the city was sad, but today, it was happy. People milled around, doing their different jobs. The tents he had remembered had been replaced with real homes, they were small, but built sturdy. People stopped to look as they rode to the city entrance, a couple of young boys running out to take the Med-jai's horses' and the Englishmen's camels.   
  
"I welcome you to the city of the Med-jai," Ameera said, "if you will come this way, I will show you to the Elder's tent."   
Robert gave an uneasy glance to Nick.  
"Um…Robert really has nothing to do with all this, he just came along with me…"  
"Fine then, I will have someone give him the tour, if you wish."  
"That would be fine, thank you." Robert said softly, unsure of his surroundings.   
  
Ameera called out to a young warrior and spoke to him for a minute. The warrior smiled and nodded then crossed to Robert.   
"Please, come with me."   
Robert gave one last uneasy glance to Nick as he was led away.   
  
"Mr. O'Connell, please follow me." Ameera said, indicating him to follow her.   
"Please, call me Nick."  
"Please, come with me." She shot back, as she began to walk away. He smiled and chuckled, and followed her as she walked towards the center of the town.   
"This place has changed much since the last time I have seen it."   
"And when would that have been?"  
"When I was ten, and I came for the fune…" he stopped short, not knowing how she would take to it.  
"Yes, I remember. Your whole family came, did they not?"  
"Yes."  
  
She nodded and walked on, never looking back at him. As they passed, a few people bowed their heads in respect towards her, and she responded with a 'thank you' nod of her head. Looking back, Nick saw that Omar was keeping behind them closely. They soon came to a small tent, and Omar held the flap back, allowing Ameera and Nick to enter before him. The tent held a long table and eleven men sitting on one side of it, on the other side, were three chairs placed directly in the middle. As they entered, the men stood up and soluted their queen and second in command. They both soluted back.   
  
"Queen Ameera, what matters do you wish to discuss with us?" The man in the direct middle of the table said. All the men wore dark Med-jai robes, but his had a dark green trim. The three sat down, Ameera in the middle, Nick to her right and Omar to her left.   
"This man," She indicated Nick, "Nick O'Connell, brings us word that a group of men want to try and bring back the creature from Ahm Shere. He clams they know the whereabouts of both the lost oasis and the golden pyramid."  
"How?"  
"A map that his great-grandfather stupidly drew, and they stole."  
  
"Wait…O'Connell?"  
"Yes, this man is a descendent of the O'Connell family that went up against the creature so long ago."  
"Then, we know he is being truthful?"  
"We hope he is."  
"You don't believe him, my lady?"  
"I am not sure yet."  
  
"We should at least check it out, right?" Omar spoke up. Nick sat listening to the Arabic, silent. He could pick up bits and pieces of what they were saying, but his Arabic was very rusty.   
"I think we should," The high elder said, "It will be best to be cautious. We would not want a repeat of the times with the O'Connell's."  
  
"Fine." Her voice was bitter, "Should we consult the book of Amon Ra? In case these Englishmen do bring the creature back?"  
"That is also a good idea, take him with you, he will understand the spells."  
Ameera couldn't believe what she was hearing. Did they really believe that the men Nick spoke of could really and truly bring the creature back? She sighed.   
"I don't think any of this will be ness…"  
  
"Ameera, we all swore, on our oath, to do any and all in our power to stop the creature from being reborn. Sadly, we failed twice at that…and we will not make it a third time. I know that this whole thing is a bit beyond your years, but it has to be done. I do not want the creature to be brought back a third time!" The high elder finally snapped.   
  
Ameera, Omar, Nick, and the ten other elders sat back a little stunned.   
  
"How dare you speak to me like that!" She spat bitterly.   
"When your father, Allah rest his soul, died, he made me swear that I would watch over you and protect you. Now I know that the task is next to impossible, but I am still going to try. There are many a people out there who look down upon you for being a woman. They don't think it is right that we even have a female chieftain! And if you go out and let the creature come back to earth, what will those people think of you? I know that you think it will be a waste of time, but think of it as doing your job! Because that is what it is!"  
  
"The greatest leader of the Med-jai allowed the creature to be reborn, twice!"  
"Yes, that is true, and he was there to help take the creature down, both times! Ameera, in our eyes, Ardeth Bay was the greatest leader of all the time of the Med-jai. And in my eyes, you have the potential to become the second greatest leader. You have to realize that this very issue could make or break you in our eyes. Even if these damned Englishmen succeed in bringing back the creature, you could be there to take him down. Don't let the potential of your greatness slip by. I could not bear to see that, and neither could those close to you. Make us proud, my god-child, prove yourself to those who do not believe in you."  
  
She stared into his eyes for a long time, forgetting that there were other people in the room.   
"Baber, I…"  
"Ameera…Ardeth himself saw the potential in you. He saw the power you held and the great future you would have as our leader. He knew that in any battle, you would lead us to victory. Now we have a battle to face one that he himself faced. Led us to victory, my queen, make us all proud."  
  
"Yes Baber, I will."  
He sat back, a smile on his face. "Your father would be so proud."  
  
~~  
"What went on in there? I couldn't really understand it, my Arabic is a little…bad." Nick said as the three stepped out into the bright day.   
"Basically, the Med-jai are going to Ahm Shere, to stop these men from bringing back the creature…or to stop the creature himself." Omar said, squinting his eyes.  
"Now I will take you to the book of Amon Ra, we need to find a spell that will take the creature out for good." Ameera said softly, walking towards the stables. "Feel lucky, O'Connell, a member of your family hasn't even seen this book in a very long time."  
  
Nick was almost jumping for joy, first Humanaptra, now the book of the living, then Imhotep! He was almost reliving the adventures his heroes had experienced. The female Med-jai warrior mounted her black horse and gestured to Nick to mount the one next to hers.   
  
"The book is about half an hour away from here, in a vast underground vault. Feel very lucky, for you are the first foreigner to ever step foot in there."  
Nick smiled so hard it made his face hurt…this was the life he had always dreamed of. He was going to help the Med-jai take down the evil Imhotep; he was going to save the day!  
  
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I know the whole, Rick making a map to all the secret places of the desert seems a little bit out of character for him. This will be explained in later chapters. K? 


	2. The vault

ok, ok, second chapter. YAY! Um, I hope you still like it. We will have more action in the up-coming chapters. Yeah, I hope you still like. NMGS!   
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The ride to the vault was silent and short. About half an hour after leaving the city, in which Nick sung to him self quietly, Ameera stopped her horse suddenly. She called out to Nick to stop as well.   
  
"Wait…why are we stopping?"  
"We are where we need to be."  
"This doesn't look like any…woah."  
She had jumped down and began to shove away sand from a certain spot, finally revealing a large stone door. Of to the side, was a star shaped lock, in which Ameera pulled out a star shaped key, and unlocked the large stone door.   
  
"Do you mind helping me? This thing is horribly heavy." She said, grabbing on to the long handle on top of the stone slab. Nick joined her, and with grunts, they pulled the door up. It was heavy, and it hinged back with a thud. Ameera began to climb down the stairs that led into the dark pit, lighting a torch when she reached the bottom. He joined her at the bottom of the cold room, lighting his own torch. They were in a long hallway, its stone walls covered in hieroglyphs and other strange symbols and pictures.   
  
"Even if any one, besides the Med-jai, were to ever find this place, they would not be able to get past the traps we have set. Stay close to me now, I wouldn't want you to be beheaded."  
Nick laughed nervously. He stayed at her side and walked with the exact pace she had. Yet, to his surprise, they made it to the end of the hallway with ease, nothing strange happening.   
  
"Wait…what about the traps?" He asked.   
"As a Med-jai, I know how to walk this hallway with out setting off any of the traps we have set. It is lucky you stayed at my side…" She didn't explain why he was lucky, and he didn't want to know.   
  
The door in front of them was large and gold, a knob of some sort off to the side. The knob was a large ball connected to an eight-sided star. She placed her hand on the knob and pulled back, twisting it to the left, then to the right, before pushing it back into another eight-sided star underneath it. There was a load sound and the door slowly swung back, revealing a bark, cool, musty room. The air in it thick and old, the temperature about twenty degrees below the temp in the hallway.   
  
Ameera entered first, lighting torches as she went along. Nick followed, his mouth dropping at the sight of the treasures held in the room. Vast piles of gold everywhere, Jewelry, furnishings, statues, all sorts of things sat in the room, untouched from all. Large stacks of stone books filled one corner, where as many nicely folded piles on cloths lined another. Large paintings and rolled up drawings sat in a small pile. And many rolled up pieces of parchment were everywhere.   
Ameera saw the look on his face and smiled. Everyone had that expression the first time they entered the room. This place was filled with all the priceless articles the Med-jai had collected over the years, irreplaceable objects that had been stored in the dark room. With a squeak, the door behind them closed, causing Nick to jump.   
  
"Are we…stuck?" He asked, voice shaking.   
"No, we are not." She said as she crossed to the other side of the room, pulling back a hanging tapestry and revealing another gold door. This one also had the same strange doorknob. She pulled it out and twisted it left the right, then pushing it back in. Once again, the door swung open, revealing another small dark room. She lit the one torch in the room and crossed to a large wooden box, placing her torch in to a holder next to the box. Nick, who had followed her in, gasped with excitement.   
  
"This very box holds the book of the living." Ameera said softly, brushing her hand over the lid. "Your great-grandfather and great-great-uncle pulled this out of the statue of Horus so very long ago. They saved your great-grandmother with this book, you know."   
"Oh…I know," He said breathlessly. He had dreamed of this very book, it was why he was there.   
With a grunt, she picked up a side of the heavy box, giving him a 'help me' glance. He picked up the other side and helped her carry it out of the room. They sat it down and pulled off the lid, a musty smell rising from the box. Inside, there was a cloth, gently; Ameera removed it, showing in all its glory, the golden book of the living. Nick let out another gasp, eyes wide, heart pounding. It was everything he had thought it to be.   
  
And it was locked.   
  
"Do…do…do we have the key…?" He asked, reaching out to touch the cool golden surface.   
"Yes, we do." She stood up and crossed to the side of the room that the cloths were piled in. she picked up a few off the top, showing a strange black box sitting admits the pile. She picked it up and crossed to Nick, handing him the box.   
"This is what started all the trouble for our ancestors." She said softly. "This is what brought both our families together."  
  
He turned the key over in his hands, looking at it closely, as she pulled the heavy book out of the box. With a little gasp, Nick pushed the sides of the octagon, and the top popped out, turning into the key it was. He couldn't believe his eyes…here he was, reliving the past of his believed family.   
Ameera placed the book on his lap with a grunt, the weight of it causing him to look up from the special key in his hands.   
  
"Go ahead, open it." She said with a smile. All of this was old news to her, but it was all spectacular to him. He placed the key into the lock, and turned it, breathing in deeply as the side locks popped open. He sat the key down and pulled the heavy cover up, letting it flop over onto his lap.   
  
He ran his fingers along the hieroglyphs, reading them silently to himself. His ancestors were all able to read, write, and speak ancient Egyptian, as was he. His own parents, however, never bothered to learn. They said it was useless, but Nick knew it wasn't.   
"What am I looking for…?" He asked, eyes scanning the golden pages.   
  
"We know that Evy had read a spell from this book to make the creature mortal so they could kill him. But the spell was a weak one and he was able to come back to life, once the right spell was read from the book of the dead. There must be a spell in this book that will completely destroy the creature, so that he could never come back to life again. We need you to find that spell, can you do it?"  
  
"Of course," He said with a smile, then turned his attention back to the heavy book on his lap. He scanned the pages for a while, his fingers running over the symbols. Finally, he let out a little laugh.   
  
"This is the spell that Evy read, Kadeesh mal! Kadeesh mal! Pared oos! PARED OOS!!" He laughed to himself. "My word…she taught me that when I was a child, told me that is was very useful to get rid of people you didn't want around. I tried it once, but it didn't work. Now I know who to use it on." He laughed again. Then went back to scanning the pages. It took him a little while, and as he read through the book, Ameera walked through the treasure in the room, looking at certain objects. She constructed a small pile of objects, including some jewelry, parchments, a drawing and what looked like a folded Med-jai robe.   
  
"Here we go," He said suddenly, tapping a page with his fingertip, "This is the spell that should completely destroy Imho…the creature."  
Ameera smiled. "Very good, now, do you need something to copy it down with?"  
"No, I got it." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded wad of paper and a charcoal pencil. He unfolded the paper, revealing three large pieces, picking up one; he placed it on the page and began to make a rubbing of it. She watched this all with interest, smiling softly.   
He was a handsome man, tall, dashing, charming. She shook the thought away, she mustn't think like that, but she couldn't help it, he was all those things.   
  
After he was done, he went through the rest of the pages, checking to see that he had gotten the right spell. It appeared that he had, but he didn't want to let go of the book.   
"Can't I take it with me…to study it more…?"  
"No, that book can not leave this vault. It took us a very long time to find it and its box, and we are not going to take the chance of losing it again."   
"Then it was you who dug the hole at the city…"  
"Yes, I went down there myself. Very beautiful place, the city of the dead…"  
"Scarabs?"  
"Luckily, no."  
"I would love to see it sometime…"  
  
"Maybe. Are you done? We need to get back, there is much to do here…and we have been here far to long as it is."  
Nick realized they had been there for about an hour and a half. His eyes fell over the pile of artifacts she had made.   
"Wait…what's with that?" He asked, pointing.   
"Oh…just some things that I thought you would find intrusting. Like," She picked up a pair of golden tridents. "These were Evy's, she fought with them during the battle at the temple Ka, she saved Queen Emily's life with these. Gave them to her afterwards, said she should keep them."  
  
Nick, who still had the heavy book on his lap, took the weapons and turned them over in his hands, studying them up close. His beloved great-grandmother fought with these…killed with these. They were weapons of a true warrior.   
She watched him closely, as he held the tridents close to his face, looking at every inch of them, taking the feel and weight and power of them in.   
  
"I thought you might like to see those." She said softly, picking up one of the folded robes she had picked out. "You might like this to, this was the robe Ardeth Bay was wearing when he first met your family."  
Nick gasped and sat the weapons down, running his fingers over the rough black cloth. It was dirty and slightly faded.   
"It is also the same robe he wore when they awoke the creature the first time…"  
"How do you know?"  
  
"He kept them all, every robe from every significant time in his life, he kept the robes he wore in every battle he ever fought it. This one," She picked up a robe lined in silver, "this one he wore when he traveled to England to save the O'Connell's from the creatures followers. It was never washed and never mended, it still has his blood on it." She carefully unfolded one part of the robe, showing the claw marks of one of Imhotep's mummy solders, incrusted around the slashed were dried blood.   
  
"Oh my god…this stuff in amazing!" Nick carefully lifted the book of the living off his lap and sat it down with a grunt. He kneeled next to the pile; she went down with him.   
"This is a drawing that my great-great aunt Meelesh drew of Ardeth, when he was very young." She unrolled a drawing, showing the unmistakable face of the King of the Med-jai.   
"What ever happen to her?" Nick asked, looking at the drawing closely.   
"She is still alive…" Ameera said, picking up a piece of parchment.   
  
"My god...how old is she?"  
She laughed. "We have lost count. This is Ardeth's…um…birth certificate, I believe you call it." She handed him the paper. They sat and looked at the past for another hour and a half, losing all account of time and where they were.   
  
~~  
The sun was hanging low when they got back to the Med-jai City.   
"Are we all ready to go?" Ameera asked Omar as she dismounted, handing the reigns to a young boy.   
  
"Yes, it will be you, myself, Haris, and Radhi. We will leave tomorrow morning and go to Cairo, where we will have a chartered plane waiting. It will take us about half a day to reach the point where we will have to land and start out on foot. Then it will take us another day to reach where we think the lost oasis is. Did you bring the map?"   
Ameera handed him a rolled up piece of parchment. Rick wasn't the only one to make a map to Ahm Shere.   
  
"Good. When we get there, the sixth tribe will send us reinforcements if needed."  
"Good, good. We have the spell in case they bring the creature back."  
"Is it the right one?"  
"Yes, we went through the book very carefully."  
"Radhi can read ancient Egyptian."  
"Wait." Nick said, stepping into the conversation. "I thought I was going with you."  
"What ever gave you that idea?" Ameera asked, turning to him.  
"I helped you find that spell!"   
  
"Yes, and we are very grateful that you did. But this is a dangerous mission and it be best if you just go back to England."  
"I told you about the plan!"  
"And again, we are grateful you did."  
"I am going with you. I know these men; I know how they act and what they will be doing. You need me to go."  
  
"O'Connell, tomorrow I am leaving for Ahm Shere, and you are not going with us. I will have some of our warriors take you and your friend back to Cairo, after we are long gone."  
"I am going with you, you need someone to read that spell!"  
"That's why Radhi is going with us. Believe me, we have it all planed out and under control."  
"I am coming with you."  
"No, you are not."  
"Then I will go on my own…"  
"And how are you going to get there?"  
  
"I will go with the only other person who got out of Ahm Shere alive."  
"Izzy is long dead…"  
"Yes, but his grandson isn't."  
  
This stopped a walking Ameera in her tracks; she spun around to face him.  
"Oh yeah…he knows about the oasis, and how to get there." Nick said, with a smile.   
"You wouldn't…"  
"I already have. He is standing by as we speak."  
"You lie."   
"I would never!"  
  
Ameera looked like she was going to punch him, and Nick could tell she was angry as all hell.   
"You will not go with him."  
"And what is going to stop me?"  
"I will tie you up if I have to, tie the both of you up until we get back." She said bitterly, suddenly hating the man she that had spent all afternoon with.   
  
"Wait…I have nothing to do with this!" Robert, who was standing next to Nick, said.   
"It doesn't matter, you are not going."  
"I am to! Nothing is going to stop me!"  
"I am going to stop you!" She roared.   
  
"Ameera, talk to me for a second." Omar said, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her away.  
"What?" She hissed in Arabic, not wanting Nick to hear or understand.   
"Maybe we should take him with us. He has a point you know, he does know these men who are trying to rise the creature. He could distract them as we attack."  
"No, he IS NOT coming with us."  
  
"Ameera…I don't know why you don't want him to…but I think he should. Radhi is pretty rusty on his Egyptian, what if he says the wrong words? Or what if he gets killed before he can read it? None of us will be able to say it, because we never learned to read Egyptian."  
"I can speak it…" She protested.   
"But can you read it? I think it would be best if he came along. He knows what to read…he knows how to say it. And he knows the men who are behind this. Besides, this is a part of his history as much as it is a part of ours."  
  
Ameera glared at her cousin and then looked at Nick, who was talking with Robert.   
"Fine! Fine, he can come with us. But so help me…if he does one thing to interfere with what we have to do…"  
"Why would you say that?" Omar said with a smile.   
  
"Because every time his family and ours gets together, that is exactly what his side does!"   
He chuckled. "I'll go tell him the news. By the way, your mom is looking for you." He walked off towards Nick. With a sigh, Ameera lent to where she knew her mother would be.   
  
~~  
"Mom? You were looking for me?" Ameera said as she walked into the medical tent. Her mother, like Meelesh, was the head doctor of the Med-jai City, and she found her mom cleaning up around the tent. Muriel looked up and smiled; gray and black hair puled back into a tight bun. Brown eyes shining into her daughter's lime green eyes. Ameera and her mother looked the same, but she had her father's eyes. Who had his father's eyes who had his mother's eyes.   
  
"Yes dear, I wanted to hear about this trip you are going on tomorrow…and the O'Connell boy. My, he is a cute one, isn't he?"  
Ameera sighed and rolled her eyes. Always like her mother, trying to set her up with ever 'cute' boy she saw.   
"Mom, why do I have the feeling that you already know everything about both the trip and him?"  
"Ameera, dear, I want YOU to tell me."  
  
She rolled her eyes again. "Tomorrow, I, along with a few other warriors, are going to Cairo, getting on a plane, and flying to the end of Egypt, then walking down the Blue Nile, until we reach where the lost oasis of Ahm Shere was, then we are going to stop some foolish men from trying to bring back the creature."  
"I know all that dear, I meant about the O'Connell boy. Nick, I believe."  
  
"He is a kind man, he is the great-grandson of Rick and Evy, he is just like them, knows how to speak and read ancient Egyptian, and he is very interested in the life's that his family had lived. And I believe that he wants to relieve the life they did."  
"Do you think he's cute?"  
"Mother!"  
  
"Do you?" Muriel smiled brightly. "Ameera, you are 27 years old, you should think about getting a husband, producing an heir!"  
"Don't give me that lecture again, mom, I know how it goes by heart. So please, just stop right there. Nick is a handsome man, yes. But he is not my type, and I am not going to settle down with him."  
"Fine…" She stayed silent for a second, "But you do think he is cute?"  
"Yes, mother, I think he is cute."  
  
Muriel smiled brightly, crossing to her daughter, taking her head in her hands and kissing her forehead.   
"Ameera, I just want you to be happy. I know it is hard for you, being chieftain and all, and I feel that you missing apart of you because you don't have a male…"  
"Mom…I will be ok. I have done this…what…five years with out a 'male'."  
"I just want you to be happy, Se't lidj. I always worry when you go off on these battles, I worry I will lose you. I already lost your father, and your brother is off with the second tribe. All I have is you, so I have to worry about you and your happiness."  
  
Ameera hugged her mom tightly. "Mom, I will be ok, I will always be ok. I know you worry, but you really don't have to. And as for my happiness, I am happy. I have a wonderful life as it is. Yes, I am 'male less', as you or Andrea would put it, but its ok. One day, I will meet my perfect match, and we will get together, and have a family, and produce heirs for the throne of the Med-jai. Ok?"  
  
Her mom nodded.   
"Good, now I have to go get ready for tomorrow and then eat. Care to join me?"  
"No, my child, I think I am going to hunt down this Nick."  
"Don't you dare…"  
The older woman smiled, "I wont."   
Ameera didn't believe her.   
  
~~  
Travis Ripkin couldn't believe his eyes as they left the Blue Nile. Yes, what was before them was miles and miles of sand, but underneath was treasure, power, and revenge. He smiled brightly in the dusk, and walked on, leading the large group of people who were behind him.   
Behind him was a group of fifteen people. Two of his colleges, five large desert warriors, dressed in red and black robes, and seven local workers, hired to dig them to Ahm Shere.   
  
"Travis!" The squeaky voice of Martin Adams rang in his ears, causing his smile to fade. With a bitter sigh, Travis turned his head, looking at the short man who ran up to him.   
"According to this map you got, we are now where the oasis was…but I don't think it is here anymore."  
  
"Really?" Travis asked, sarcasm ringing in his voice, "I thought all oasis's look like this!" He had gone through more days with Martin at his side then he ever cared to, but the little man could read the strange map, so he was there.   
"Oh! You're so funny!" Martin said with a jolly laugh, he didn't even tell he was being mocked. "But, Travis, if we continue on tonight, we should get to where the gold pyramid is…er…was, in a couple of hours."   
"Sounds good to me, everyone carry on!" He shouted, waving his hand forward.   
  
Travis Ripkin was a proud man, always moving his six-foot body with grace. He was nicely built, often spending much time working out to escape the normal British museum male stereotype of being nerdy. A large hand coming up to run through his sandy brown hair, blue eyes scanning the desert through the dark sunglasses he still wore, although it was dusk. His voice was powerful, his accent adding to the power.   
  
Martin Adams, on the other hand, was only five foot seven, slightly portly, and had the most god-awful voice in the world. It drove Travis insane every time he spoke. His red hair was long and often unruly, causing him to have to constantly brush it from his brown eyes. He was not a handsome man in any sort, but he was smart and could figure out anything that was encrypted. He was able to read and discern the strange map that Rick O'Connell had made so many years before.   
  
The third and final college, Steven York, was unlike the both of them. Where as they were British and damn proud of it, Steven was German and hated the very fact. No one ever really knew why, but there were rumors that he was a descendent of a Nazi General. Steven had tried his hardest to rid himself of his accent, but there was still a very weak one in his voice. He was six foot three, muscular, had short, bleached blond hair and pricing green eyes. He didn't talk much, and by looking at him, you couldn't guess he worked in a museum. Yet he did, and he was one of the brightest blokes in there when it came to ancient Egypt. Next, of course, to Nick O'Connell.   
  
Both Steven and Travis hated Nick with a passion, and they both had their separate reasons, but it did make them friends. Martin had nothing against the O'Connell lad; he was always nice to Martin, holding open doors, saying good morning and such. Martin had no idea about the plans that Steven and Travis had for their little trip, he just thought they were going on a normal dig. In fact, he wasn't even present when they had gotten Nick drunk, forced the story out of him, and stole all the material they would need to rise Imhotep again. He knew nothing of it all; he was just there to read the map.   
  
They walked on, Martin eyeing the large warriors uneasily. When he asked why they needed them the answer that came back was, "For protection." He didn't trust them; but then again, he didn't trust most people that much larger then him.   
  
Two hours later, they stopped in the sand, everyone looking around at the nothing that surrounded them.   
"Are you sure that this is where we are supposed to be?" Steven asked, his deep voice threatening.   
"Um…as far as I can see…this is where we should start digging."  
"Good." Travis said, dropping his backpack. "Set up camp here then."   
  
Ten minutes later, after the diggers had set up the three's tents, they all collapsed, exhausted from the journey there.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`  
Travis is named after my brother. When I told him he was going to be the villan in my story, Trav said he wouldnt want it any other way. My brother is a strange guy. Thus endith the back story to one of my characters. More coming soon. 


	3. Finding the pyramid

Um...yeah. Still going on...ya know. Got about 6 chpaters left...uh huh. I hope this one goes over with you readers, I like it.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Save the girl! Kill the creature!" Ameera heard her great-grandfather yell, watching as he ran into the hallway of mummies, beating them off one by one. Next, she was in a large, well furnished home, watching Ardeth Bay and Evelyn O'Connell fight off men in red and black robes. "What's in the chest?!" "The Bracelet of Anubis!" She saw the outside of the large house, she saw him running up to a man, bowing his head in respect. "O'Connell." She watched as a large rock started to break apart, watching as a bony hand shot up from it, she could hear the chanting of the red & black warriors, and the spell being read somewhere from below her.   
  
She watched this all like it was a movie, watching Ardeth and the O'Connell's fight off Imhotep and his minions. She was on a bus, on a plane, on a flying boat…she saw all the ruins they had been to in search of Alex. She saw the Blue Nile, and the large wall of water…and the face in the water…Then she saw the oasis of Ahm Shere, in all its glory, and pain. What the hell were those little pygmy things? She watched Ardeth fight and defeat Lock-nah, proving him self once more, as one of the greatest warriors ever.   
  
But she never saw the creature himself, regenerated. She wondered what he looked like with skin. Then, she was standing in the desert, looking around, she saw the Med-jai standing ready to battle, swords held forward, and she heard Ardeth yell, "'Till death!" And heard the roar of the warriors. Turning her head, she watched as a sea of large dog-faced warriors came at them, full force. As the distance closed from one hundred yards to 80 to 60 to 50 to 40, she turned back to her relative, his face grim, eyes powerful and deep. She opened her mouth to scream, but nothing came out. She turned back, the dog warriors were now ten yards from them, then, the next thing she knew, and they were right there, right in front on them, ready to kill every Med-jai.   
  
~~  
Ameera sat up with a scream, body dripping in a cold sweat. Her chest heaved up and down, for whatever reason, she was out of breath. She closed her eyes tight, her breathing slowing down a bit. What a nightmare, she had never had one so vivid. She flopped back on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, letting her eyes adjust to the dim light in her bedroom.   
  
After a long time, she sighed and sat up, throwing the covers off her body. She always loved the sound of bare feet on the cool floor of her home, and it brought a smile to her face as she left her bedroom and crossed into the living room. She looked out side and noticed that it was close to sunrise. Soon her tribe would start spilling out of their homes, making their ways to the city kitchen for breakfast. She knew that in a few hours, she would be leaving her city for Cairo, then making her way to Ahm Shere. Another sigh escaped her as she fell back onto the pillows in her living room. Now she understood why her father had always told her that sleep for a Med-jai was never restful.   
  
Her father…her beloved father. The first chieftain to die from a battle in three generations. He was always a strong man, but somehow, those they were fighting got the best of him. He hung on for three days after being wounded so badly, and in that time he forced the ceremony of the next ruler. Customary to be held after the funeral of the fallen king, he had forced it to be held so that he could watched his daughter become chieftain of the Med-jai. It had made him so proud that she was his heir, and he told her often that there wasn't one person better for the job.   
  
The thoughts of her father brought a tear to her eye, she had loved him so very much, and now missed him just the same. Often times, like now, she wished he was there to hug her tightly and whisper, "Everything will be alright, we will make it through this, my princess." Like he would do whenever there was trouble.   
  
She sighed and stood up, crossing to her bedroom. She dressed for the ride, pulling on her black pants, which hung low on her hips, and a black, thin strap tank top, which she always wore under her robe. One if the hardest things about being a female warrior, was having such…delicate features. She was so very thankful she did not have a big chest, other wise, they would just get in the way. The tank top fitted her nicely, showing on her small curves, her nicely built arms and shoulders. It came down to just above her belly button, so it showed off her nice, flat stomach.   
  
The people in the Med-jai were used to her beauty and form. But when she went anywhere else, men often would stare at her, mouths agape, eyes wide. Even in her robes she caught their attention, their heads turning as they walked by her. Some of these men would stop and try to talk to her, but then Omar would step in and they would back off. Unless she wanted to talk to them, which was hardly ever. She knew that she scared the men in the outside world. They could tell she was strong and could kick their ass in a second, but also always having the huge Omar at her side didn't help much. She did frighten people, with her duel scimitars hanging at her waist, ready to be used in a second. Those native to Egypt never got into the way of the Med-jai, for they were a sacred and powerful people. All knew about the legendary Med-jai warriors, and everyone respected them.   
  
She picked up a fresh robe and carried it out to the living room, she would put it on later, when she was almost ready to leave. For now, she was hungry, so she joined those few people who were out at the kitchen, helping herself to a hearty breakfast. She talked and laughed with a few of the townsfolk, until she looked up and saw her best friend, Andrea, coming towards her. Her little five month pregnant belly sticking out.   
  
"Morning Meera." She said with a smile as she got her food and sat down next to her friend.   
"Morning Andie." Ameera said back with a smile of her own. "How are you feeling today?"  
"Oh...fine. Except for the morning sickness. Oh…that is the one think I HATE about this." She pointed to her belly. "At least it is the first one, so that means there is more coming!"   
They both laughed.   
"So, Meera, how long are you going to be gone?"  
"Some where around a week, I would have to guess. I really don't know how long we will be down there."  
  
Andrea sighed. "Well, you will be well missed. Mainly by me! Who else is going to giggle with me about things?"  
"I am a queen, I do not 'Giggle'. I laugh." Ameera said in a mocking manor.   
They both laughed again. "Well, I need you to 'Giggle' with me about that Nick O'Connell."  
"Andrea! You're a married woman!"  
"I know! I don't mean it like that, but you should just see the looks he is getting from the local women! They are falling head over heals for him!" She lowered her voice to a whisper, "I don't blame them, either."  
  
"Andie, please…spare me."  
"What? Do you think he is cute?"  
"I had this conversation with my mother yesterday, I am not about to have it with you to!"  
"Come on! If you cant tell your best friend, who are you going to tell?"   
Ameera looked at her sideways. There was a long pause.   
"Fine, I think he is cute. I think he is very cute. But he is also arrogant and slightly rude. Forcing his way into Med-jai business!"  
  
Her friend laughed her self silly.   
"What?" Ameera asked the shaking woman next to her.   
"I have NEVER seen you fall for a guy like this!"  
Ameera had to try her hardest not to slap Andrea upside the head. Instead, she just glared at her friend.   
"Shut up, Andie. She said finally with a smile on her face.   
"Come on Merra…"  
  
"Merra?" A voice said behind them, both of them turned and looked up at Nick, a smile on his face. "What a nice way of saying your name. Mind if I call you that?"  
"Not at all, if you don't want to live to see Ahm Shere." Ameera shot back.   
"Ameera it is." Nick smiled and sat down across from the two women, holding out his hand as he did so.   
  
"Nick O'Connell." He said to Andrea, "You are?"  
"Andrea Maher." She smiled and took his hand, shaking it firmly. "I have heard much about you, Mr. O'Connell."  
Ameera kicked her friend under the table.   
"Really?" He shot a look towards the chieftain's way. "Well, I hope it was all good."  
"For the most part."  
  
He laughed, "Excuse me, I am going to get something to eat. Big day you know!" He stood and walked off. Ameera turned to her best friend, glaring at her.   
"Damn you woman!" She spat.   
But her friend just laughed. "Oh, come on, if I cant tease you about a boy, who will I tease?"   
Ameera sighed and stood up. "I'm going to go find my cousin, seen him around anywhere?"  
  
"Nope, probably still asleep. You know how Omar is."   
Ameera smiled and placed a strong hand on her friend's shoulder. "Then I will see you later…and if you tell him anything, I will have to kill you."  
"Love you to!" Andrea called as Ameera walked off, laughing.   
  
~~  
"OMAR!" He felt a sharp pain in his forehead. "Get up!"  
"All right, all right. Damn…must you always wake me up like this?" He sat up, opening his eyes, seeing Ameera standing next to his bed, pointer finger ready to tap him on the head again.   
"We should leave soon, it is going to be a hot day today. So get up! You need to make sure everything is ready for our trip."  
  
"How come I always have to do stuff like that? Make sure we have all the supplies, make sure everything is ready…how come I have to do that and not you?" He swung his legs off the bed.   
"Because that is what the second in commands job is, you knew that when you excepted the place at my side. But if you don't like it…I could always give the position over to Dannah…"  
  
"NO!" She loved to threaten him with giving his position to his rival, kept him in check.  
"Good. Then get up. We have work to do." She left on that note, leaving him to shake his head.   
  
~~  
An hour later, Ameera heard a soft knock on her door, as she was getting ready to leave for the stables.   
"Come in!" She called, in Arabic.   
  
The door opened and Nick stuck his head in, smiling. "I hope you just said 'come in'."  
"I did." She said, sitting on her pillows to pull on her boots. "Are you ready to go, Nick?"  
"Yes, I am. I thank you for allowing me to come, I know that…well…you didn't want me to."  
  
"Don't mention it." She laced up one boot, and started on the other. Nick crossed to one of the shelves in her home; looking at the pictures that sat on top.  
"Hey!" He exclaimed, picking up one of the pictures. "We have this exact picture in our house."   
The picture was of The O'Connell's, Jonathan, Ardeth, and Izzy. Taken after they got back from Ahm Shere.   
  
"Hum." She said, not terribly interested. She stood up and grabbed her robe, unfolding it neatly. Ameera had her back turned to Nick, as she began to put on her robe.   
But a hand on the top of her back stopped her from pulling it up all the way. She turned her head to find Nick looking at her back carefully.   
  
"Wha…" She got out as he ran a finger over her back.   
"What a beautiful tattoo." He said softly. He was looking at, and tracing, the tattoo she had on her upper back, right in-between her shoulders, and inch under the base of her neck. It was of a sun, a moon, and a star. A circle, really, on one side, a crescent moon, on the other, the sun, its rays sticking out from its half, and in the sun, a star, beautifully detailed.   
  
She was glad he couldn't see her face, for she was turning all kinds of shades of red. The feeling of his finger tracing the tattoo was sending electricity through her body.   
"Thank you." She managed out, trying to control the feelings inside her.   
  
"Another Med-jai secret tattoo?" He asked, leaning in for a closer view.   
"It is a Bay family symbol. Every warrior Bay has held this tattoo, it is a sign of pride for my family."   
"That's great…" He smiled to himself, before taking his finger off her body, allowing her to finish putting her robe over that tight, black tank top. He scolded himself in his mind for thinking about it.   
  
She crossed to the other side of the room, to where her scimitars were waiting, as she finished putting on the robe, tying it loosely because of he hard day of riding she had before her. She was grateful to the feet between her and Nick.  
  
He watched her carefully as she tied the traditional Med-jai robe, placed her duel scimitars in their scabbards. He then watched as she wrapped her turban around her head, covering her forehead and most of her hair. She picked up a large, flat, necklace and placed it around her neck. It looked old and well worn, It was of some sort of cartouche. She was beautiful in so many ways…stop thinking that Nick, it would never happen. He told himself in his mind.   
  
"Um…what about Robert…?" He said finally.   
"What about him?" She said back, smoothing out her outfit.   
"Is he going to come with us…?"  
"NO! Only you are going to Ahm Shere, not him to."  
"No…I mean to Cairo. Is he going to travel back with us today?"  
  
She hadn't thought about that before. It would be fitting to take him back with them now, and with Robert there, Nick would stay preoccupied with him.   
"Yes, he will be going with us. You better go tell him, though, we leave in five minutes."  
She looked around, making sure she had not forgotten anything, she hadn't. So, with a soft sigh, she crossed to her front door and held it open, gesturing him to leave her house. "I will meet you two by the stables in five minutes, if you are not there, we will leave with out you."  
  
He smiled and chuckled. "We will be there, My lady."   
He crossed to the door, looked at her for a second, then left, whistling along the way. She shook her head and closed the door behind her as she left.   
  
~~  
She found Omar, Haris, and Radhi packing up the horses they were going to be riding. Six horses who would hold riders, one supply horse. They would pick up the other weapons they would need in Cairo. The three men bowed their heads respectfully as she entered.   
"My Lady," Haris said, "We are all ready to be going."  
"Great, then go say your good byes, we will leave soon."   
  
The two young warriors left, leaving Omar and Ameera to look at each other.  
"Ready for this?" He asked softly.  
"No, but I don't think it will make a deference."  
"No, it wont. Come on…I know your mother and Andrea want to see you before you leave."  
Five minutes later, after saying good bye to their loved ones, the group of six, seven if you counted the supply horse, left the Med-jai City, of on their day and a half ride to Cairo.   
  
~~  
"DIG!" Steven yelled at the workers they had hired. "We are not paying you do stand there!"   
In the mid-morning heat, the seven diggers glared at their boss then went back to work, cursing under their breaths. Steven satisfied that they were now working, walked back to the open tent where Travis was sitting with Martin. From the look on his face, Steven could tell Travis was about to murder the smaller man.   
  
"You see, this map only tell us where the oasis is, not how far it is under the sand. We can hope not to far, right!" Martin laughed for some reason.   
Travis was clenching his fists, ready to knock the little man through the wall of the tent.   
"Martin." Steven said in his thick voice, "Will you excuse us for a few minutes, I wish to talk to Travis in privet."  
  
"Of course!" He stood and crossed out of the tent, squinting as he left.   
"Thank god!" Travis said once he had left. "I was about to shoot that little bas…"  
"Come now, we have bigger problems at hand. Like finding that pyramid and that book."  
"True…damn it, you would think they would have thought to grab the book. It would have made it so much easier."  
  
"The O'Connell's were running for their life's, I don't think the book of the dead was on their minds at the time. Besides, the pyramid is made of pure gold, so it is worth it either way."  
"Do you think the monsters will still be down there?"  
"The pygmies? HA! There is no such thing. Little bastards…that part of the story was just made up!"  
  
Travis sat back, wondering what other parts of the story were made up over the years. "We should have just brought O'Connell, you know that right? We should have tied that bugger up and brought him with us, then we could have fed him to the pygmies."  
"Don't worry, my friend, I don't think Nick O'Connell will be getting out of the safe for a very long time."   
  
~~  
"They locked you in the family safe?" Omar asked Nick, as they rode through the desert. "They locked you in a safe…"  
"Yep. After they boozed me up, they tied me up, locked me in the safe, and kept the keys." Nick shuddered at the thought. "Spent about twelve hours in that damn thing before someone heard me banging around in there."  
  
"But…they kept the keys…"  
"My family wasn't stupid, the safe has about five different sets of keys among all of us. Bloody awful place to be stuck in, for so long."  
"I would have to think so." Ameera piped in finally. She had stayed quiet for most of the trip so far. "Why didn't they just kill you?"  
"I don't know. I thought they were going to, but I guess the best plan they could have come up with was to lock me in the safe."  
  
~~  
"Why didn't we just kill the little bastard? We could have done better then locking him in a safe." Travis said, mindlessly throwing a ball into the air and catching it.   
"Believe me, I would have, if someone hadn't forgotten the gun." Steven spat.   
"We could have stabbed him!"   
  
The thought had never dawned on Steven before.   
"Well, I am sure he is dead by now. There is no way he could have survived this long in that place. Nick O'Connell is no longer a problem to us."  
  
~~  
On the second day, Robert was relieved to see Cairo on the horizon.   
"Thank god!" He let out, wiping the sweat off his forehead. "I have never been more happy to see a city before."  
  
"Happy to know you enjoyed the desert so much, Robert." Ameera said rolling her eyes. When they got to Cairo, Robert and Nick made their way to their hotel as the Med-jai made their way to the small hotel owned by the Med-jai. All the Med-jai who worked there were not marked like the warriors. As they entered the grounds, a few young boys ran out to grab their horses', taking them to a stable behind the hotel.   
  
"My lady!" A soft voice called out, "What a delight it is to have you here with us again. Please come in." A small, old woman walked up to them, smiling.   
"Thank you Eliza." Ameera flashed her a smile and followed the little woman inside. The Med-jai sat up their rooms and unloaded their few things. Then, Ameera and Omar sat off to get Nick and go talk to Izzy, the third. While Haris and Radhi went to pick up their extra weapons.   
  
~~  
Ameera and Omar found the hotel the Englishmen were staying at, a Hilton, no less. Receiving strange looks from tourists as they crossed the lobby, got in to an elevator, and made their way down a crowded hallway. Omar knocked firmly on door 107.   
  
"Been gettin' funny looks?" Nick asked, opening the door and looking at the two Med-jai. Dressed in dark blue and black robes, tattoos showing brightly on their faces and hands. Omar with his one very long scimitar at his waist, Ameera with her duel scimitars, not as long as Omar's, but both could still do some damage.   
  
"Like you would never believe." Ameera said with a smile, as a female, she was getting even stranger looks from the non-locals. "Are you ready? It is already late in the afternoon and I want to get to Izzy before he heads out for the night."  
  
"Yeah, I am." He grabbed a small bag next to the door and called out a good bye to Robert, who appeared at the door to wish his best friend and the Med-jai a safe trip. And with that, they walked out of the hotel together, the Englishman and the Med-jai getting even stranger looks then before.   
  
"So, you going to trust your life to Izzy?" Nick said, slightly amused.   
"If it was good enough for the great Ardeth, then it is good enough for us." Ameera said as they walked across town. "Although, he didn't really trust the original Izzy either."  
  
They came upon a small airfield towards the end of town. Many a broken down plane sat around the runway, many a dirty man working on the planes.   
  
"You know, it amazes me that the first Izzy had children, let alone those kids having some of their own…" Omar said softly, so that only his companions could hear. This caused them both to laugh slightly.   
"I am with Ardeth…why cant you people keep your feet on the ground?" Ameera said shaking her head. After the stories Ardeth had told her as a child, about plane rides with the O'Connell's, she was not looking forward to this very trip. Granted, she had flown before, but an Izzy and an O'Connell were involved, and that could never be good.   
  
A short, plump black man walked out of the front gate humming softly to himself, reading a map.   
  
"IZZY!" Nick called out happily.   
"Oh god…no…not you." Izzy said, looking up, and backing away. "Not an O'Connell…you are noten but trouble. Every time one of me family gets involved with one o' yours, there is noten but trouble."  
  
"At least I don't shoot you." Nick said, taking a step forward. "Like Rick would have done."  
"Don't matter, you ain't coming near this air field."   
  
The two men now stood right in front of each other, staring each other down. Then they both laughed happily and hugged.   
  
"How are ya, Nick ol' boy?" Izzy (The third, not that different from his Grandfather) said, grinning stupidly.   
"Just fine my man, just fine. We still on for a plane ride from you?"  
As he said 'we', Izzy looked past Nick to see the Med-jai standing behind him, looking on rather puzzled.   
  
"What a' they doin' here?" He said, taking a step back in fright.   
"Don't worry Izzy, these are my friends, Ameera and Omar Bay."  
"Huh…" He looked puzzled. "Really. How many of them will there be?"  
"There will be five, including my self."  
"Huh, well alright. When will we be leaving?"  
  
"At around six in the morning. Will that be alright with you?" Ameera spoke up, walking towards the man. She had to be at least six inches taller then him.   
"That's a bit early…don't like bein' up that early. But…if I have to, I will."  
"Great. How much will it cost?"  
  
"Me en Nick already took care of that."  
Ameera flashed him the brightest smile she could manage. "Wonderful." Then an idea hit her. "What are we flying in?"  
"Don't worry, it is a normal plane. Not what our family rode in…but if you want to see that." Nick pointed towards a large boat with a very large balloon folded over the side.   
  
"That's…"  
"Yep, that is what took them to Ahm Shere."   
"You have got to be kidding me."  
"No ma'am, he's not." Izzy spoke up. "That is the one and only."  
Ameera's mouth dropped as she and Omar walked over to the ship, looking into it.   
  
"Does it run?"  
"No…"  
"Huh." Now she could see why Ardeth didn't like to fly. Being slammed to the ground in that thing must have, for lack of a better word, sucked. She poked her head around the ship, looking at all the old pieces of furniture and such.   
  
"Well, Izzy, on behalf of my people, I thank you for helping us out. We are very grateful that you are…um…here to help us." Ameera said, smiling softly.   
"Your welcome, miss, happy to be here to help." He winked a dark brown eye at her.   
"Um…we have to go." She said quickly, "Omar, let us be off. We must meet up with Haris and Radhi."  
  
Omar hadn't missed the wink. "Yes, Ameera…I agree with you. Nick, coming?"  
"Yeah, be right there." Nick stayed behind to talk with Izzy as the Med-jai got out of there.  
"Creepy little fella, don't you think?" Omar said as they stood in the shade of a building, waiting for Nick.   
  
"Oh yes. Thank god we don't have to spend that much time in the same area as him." She smoothed down her robe. "But, he is getting us there, and hopefully before they discover the book of the dead."  
  
~~  
"MASTER!" The voice fell over the small dig site, causing Steven and Travis to race out of their tent. "Master! We have hit something!"   
There was a small rush to get to the stop where they workers were digging. Indeed they did hit something…something gold.  
  
"What is it?" Travis said, dropping to the ground where the 45-foot sloped hole was.   
"Don't know yet, master, but we will find out quickly." One of the workers grabbed a small paintbrush and began to lightly brush away sand from gold.  
  
"Give me that!" Travis yelled, pulling the brush out of the mans hands and began to blow and brushed as hard and fast as he could. He wanted to find out what they had hit. There was an eerie silence around him. Then, finally, he uncovered a claw. Going down further, he found an arm, then another claw, and another arm. Finally a body. It was a golden scorpion, a large golden scorpion. And from the way it held its arms, it was meant to be holding something big.   
  
"Steven!" Travis called out, brushing more sand away. "What is this?"  
"Oh my god…" The thick voice came from above him. "It is the golden pyramid of the Scorpion King…"   
There was a collective gasp around them. Travis's lips curling back to an evil smile.   
"We are close, very close. I want EVERY one of the diggers working until they find us a door, got it?" Those around him nodded as he stood and brushed the sand off his pants.   
"We are close. We should have the book in our hands by tomorrow."  
Steven smiled evilly as well. "Then. It is power and riches…for both of us."  
  
~~  
The workers worked well into the night, only getting a small diner break. By nightfall, they had uncovered the top of the pyramid, and by the time they were finally able to sleep, they had uncovered little more. It was hard work, having to brush away all the sand, then hall it up the ever growing hill in buckets, and dumping it out up on top. Many workers had hurt themselves, one fainted.   
  
Martin was in disbelief at the way they were being treated, and tried to get Steven or Travis to give them a break, but they did not. Then it was up at the crack of dawn the next morning, a ten-minute breakfast break, then back to work on the hole. All the workers grumbled and cursed at the two headmen, but none dared to attack them, for the large red & black guards were always by them.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
In case you didnt make the conection, the necklace Ameera puts on, is the same one Ardeth wears in TMR. I really hope you like the story so far. More action is coming, I promise. Thanks for all those who reviewed it. *Cough*bothofyou*Cough* 


	4. Finding the Book of the Dead

In this chapter, Nikc sings two songs, Readiohead's "Let Down". & CSN&Y's "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes". As always, I dont own the songs. I dont think there is any chance Thom York or Steven Stills happens to read The Mummy Fanfic, and land on my story. But if they do, I'm telling you guys right now, your music kicks ass.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Oh my god…" Nick grumbled as his curtains were flung open, reviling an already bright sun.   
"Get up Nick, we will leave in half an hour." Ameera said softly but firmly.   
"You really need to work on how you wake people up." He mumbled, turning over in bed, back towards the window.   
  
"I hear that often, but I pay it no heed. Get up!" She slammed the door as she left.   
With a sigh and a yawn, he sat up and stretched. Swinging his legs over the bed, he stood up, stretching his whole body. With another yawn, he crossed to his small bag of cloths, pulling out a pair of khaki pants, and a white button down shirt with rolled up sleeves. Just call him adventurer Nick. He sat on his bed as he pulled on his hiking boots, lacing them softly. He then stood and looked at himself in the mirror. There he was, following in the footsteps of his heroes, and he looked the part. He ran a hand through his hair, then ran some gel through his hair, causing it to spike.   
  
Nick grabbed his things and exited the room, smiling as he did so. He found the Med-jai in the small dining room, along with a few other people who were staying at the hotel. There was not one tourist attraction or hotel that a Med-jai didn't work at. They all smiled and returned to eating their breakfasts. As he sat down, Eliza, the owner of the hotel, wondered up to him and took his order for breakfast.   
  
"So, all of you ready?" Nick said happily. They all looked at him, Omar and Haris looking up from a newspaper, then began to eat again.   
  
"Talkative buggers." Nick said to himself as his coffee was poured. Omar snorted, causing everyone to look up at him, but he just pointed to an article in the paper and shook his head in disgust. Craning his neck, Nick looked at the article, but took his head away when he realized that it was in Arabic. The others read the article and shook their heads as well. But no one said what it was about, so Nick didn't ask. Soon, his food came and he ate silently, the others waiting for him to finish eating until they stood up.   
  
"Everyone ready?" Ameera said softly. They all nodded.   
"Good then, lets get to the air field. The faster we get there, the better. Eh, boys?" They all nodded again. Ameera paid the bill and they left the hotel, leaving their horses there. They would be picked up some other time.   
  
The morning air was brisk and cool, it had to be around six o'clock. Ameera and Omar led the way to the airfield, Nick behind them, then Haris and Ridha in the back. All were carrying a bag of their own, and a bag of supplies.   
  
When they got there, they found Izzy and his beaten down plane.   
"It is very air worthy!" He called, seeing the looks of concern passing between the Med-jai.   
"It may not look that way," Nick said, dropping his bags, "But it is. I have flown in that thing plenty of times. You know flying is the safest way of travel."  
  
"No, Camel is. Or horseback riding. After what happen to my great-grandfather, I don't trust those things one bit." Omar said, dropping his bags as well. "But I don't see any other way around it."  
Ameera laughed softly and threw her bags in to the plane, then jumping in as well. "It may not have worked for him, Omar, but keep in mind, one time he was strapped to the wing of a plane, the other he was in a flying boat…I figure this has got to be more safe."  
  
Omar glared at her and jumped in the plane as well. Nick threw both his and Omar's bags in and hopped in, followed by Haris and Radhi. (They didn't talk much.) Omar and Ameera sat on the front bench, the other two Med-jai each had one to them selves, and Nick took shotgun, next to Izzy.  
  
"Now, just fassen ya seat belts, and we will be off!" Izzy said, joyfully, starting the plane. The warriors eyed each other uneasily, but did as they were told.   
  
"Nick!" Ameera yelled over the roar of the engine, "If I die because of this plane, I'm having someone bring me back and you are going to be the first one I come after!"   
Nick laughed at the comment, but looking back, he stopped. Her eyes told him she was dead serious. He sank into his seat and turned away, looking out the dirty window. After a few minutes passed, the plane jumped and started down the runway. Each of the warriors in the back were praying silently to Allah to get them to Ahm Shere safely, Nick and Izzy both had stupid grins on their faces as the plane left the ground, guiding off into the sky.   
  
Of the Med-jai, only Ameera had ever flown, so she felt somewhat calm. But the other three were all green in the faces, jumping at every slight movement of the plane. After five minutes, when they were fully airborne, the three large males settled down a bit, each taking the chance of looking down at the tiny world below. There were not up to high, but everything was still tiny. Ameera herself looked out the window, and felt her heart drop at the sight from the sky.   
  
"Transport, motorways and tramlines, starting and then stopping, taking off and landing, the emptiest of feelings, disappointed people, clinging on to bottles, and when it comes it's so, so, disappointing.   
  
Let down and hanging around crushed like a bug in the ground. Let down and hanging around.   
Shell smashed, juices flowing wings twitch, legs are going, don't get sentimental, it always ends up drivel. One day, I'm gonna grow wings, a chemical reaction, hysterical and useless hysterical and  
  
let down and hanging around, crushed like a bug in the ground. Let down and hanging around.   
Let down, Let down, Let down.   
You know, you know where you are with, you know where you are with, floor collapsing, falling, bouncing back and one day, I'm gonna grow wings, a chemical reaction, hysterical and hysterical and   
let down and hanging around, crushed like a bug in the ground. Let down and hanging around."  
  
Nick had a nice singing voice and his song seen to sooth the nerves of those onboard the plane. Ameera sat back, a found smile on her face. She liked this Nick O'Connell more and more each day she spent around him. She watched him as he stared out the dirty windows, watching the earth move by. He felt he was being watched and looked back, throwing her a bright smile and a wink. He turned back in his seat, and began to sing again.   
  
"It's getting to the point, Where I'm no fun anymore, I am sorry, Sometimes it hurts so badly, I must cry out loud, I am lonely, I am yours, you are mine, You are what you are, And you make it hard -"  
  
~~  
One of the workers gave an excited cry, motioning his fellow companions over frantically with a wave of his hand. Pushing through each other, they peered at the mans discovery. Covered by piled sand was the shape of a door, unknown ancient hieroglyphs staring ominously from above it. Working together, they promptly cleared the russet-hued sand, revealing a narrow passageway leading into the depths of the pyramid. Lighting torches with flint and steel, the workers began their sloped descent, the air musty from the years it had been undisturbed. A think layer of dust blanketed the floor, swirled up by the boots of the men's feet after eons of peace.   
  
Meticulous carvings on the depicted the gods and goddesses of ancient Egypt, the deities alarmingly real. Icons of Isis and Osiris soon gave way to the sun god, Amon-Ra, and then to the lord Anubis, his jackal head glaring, the uncanny, wicked grin on his face causing the company to shiver. The passage branched out to a large room, the walls washed in gold as torches flickered from their steel holders, hungry flames flickering low in the stale air. Portrayed on the golden walls were stories of the Scorpion King. This, of course, held nothing of notable importance to the workers, who couldn't read their own language, let alone ancient Egyptian. Statues of Anubis, six feet tall, flanked the doorway, their arms crossed and raven paws holding tight to twin tridents.   
The group stared in awe, not realizing that one of their company had wandered to the opposite side of the room. He gave a choked gasp of surprise and trepidation as he stared down into the open book of the dead, its obsidian pages glossy and the hieroglyphics carved onto the pages tempting to even those who couldn't read it's magical words.  
  
They spoke in a hushed tone, for no one could believe what they were seeing. Soon, Travis and Steven pushed their way into the golden room, crossing to where the diggers stood around the book.  
  
"Let us th…" Travis began, stopping short at the sight of the book on the floor. He pushed the diggers aside and picked it up, the weight causing a grunt to come out of him.   
"The book of the dead." Steven said in a low voice, his eyes scanning the smooth pages. He was fluent in ancient Egyptian and could read it just as well.   
  
"We are very close…all you have to do is read the right spell…and it is all ours." Travis said, voice also low so that the others could not hear it.   
"Let us hope there is a spell in here that one could read to bring Imhotep back from hell."  
"Yes, let us hope. Take it up and go through it, I am going to stay down here…watch the progress."  
  
Steven smiled and took the book, leaving the pyramid.   
"Get back to work!" Travis barked at the workers. "I want the main chamber cleared out very soon. Got it!"   
The diggers grumbled under their breaths but went to work on a large doorway.   
  
~~  
"How long will we be?" Ameera called up to Izzy.   
"About another hour!" He called back.   
  
With a sigh, she sat back in her seat. Omar was asleep next to her, and Radhi and Haris were both staring out the windows, silent.  
Nick stood up as far as he could in the small plane and made his way back to Ameera, sitting down next to her.  
  
"Having fun?" He said loudly over the noise of the plane.   
"A blast!" She said back with a smile. "You have a beautiful singing voice!"   
"Thanks!" He blushed slightly.   
"Do you have the spell?"  
  
He nodded. "In my pack! Don't worry!"  
"The only thing I have to worry about is getting off this plane alive!"  
Nick laughed and stood up. "You will, don't worry!" He made his way to the front seat again.  
  
Radhi, who was sitting behind Ameera and the sleeping Omar, leaned forward and said something to her in Hebrew. Ameera looked stunned and responded rather crossly. They exchanged words for a minute, and then Ameera shook her head and stopped talking.   
"What was that all about?" Nick asked, looking on.  
"Nothing!" Ameera shot out, blushing slightly.   
  
~~  
Martin stared in excitement at the black book of the dead.   
"Is it really…?" He asked, breathlessly.   
"Yes. It is." Steven said annoyed.   
  
The smaller of the men reached out to touch the smooth black pages, but his hand was brushed away by the larger man.   
"Be gone! I have work to do!" Steven flopped the heavy pages back to the beginning.   
Martin frowned and walked out of the tent. He made his way down the large hole of sand, to the opening of the pyramid. Walking inside, he gasped slightly at the beauty of the pyramid. In silence, he walked around looking into the rooms, studying the writings on the wall, the statues of the gods and the over all beauty of the place he was standing in.   
  
"What are you doing in here?" Cane a voice behind him, causing him to jump. Turning, he found him self staring up into the eyes of one of the red & black guards.   
"Just…looking around." He got out, trying to hide his fright.   
The guard nodded but did not leave.   
  
"No one is supposed to be in these rooms alone." He said darkly.   
"Well, I think I am alright. I mean, what harm could I cause?"  
"No one is supposed to be in these rooms alone." The guard said again. Little did Martin know that the man was the descendent of one of the men killed in the Oasis of Ahm Shere.   
  
"He is alright." Another voice came behind them. Turning, they both saw Travis standing in the doorway. "Martin, come with me, I have found something you might…enjoy."  
The small man stepped out of the path of the larger guard and crossed to his fellow Brit. "What is it?"  
  
"The main chamber of this pyramid." Travis said coolly, "Just uncovered by our diggers."   
  
~~  
The main chamber, where Rick had battled Imhotep and the Scorpion King, was large and beautiful. Sadly, there was dabris everywhere, Large blocks of stone covered the floor from where they had fallen from the ceiling. Statues and pillars were broken on their sides, large oil lamps also tipped over. There were many cracks in the floor, two of them so large they had to be jumped over, both bottomless and dark. A large gong on one side, silent since the years Imhotep had pounded it to wake the large half-man half-bug. A few weapons lay scattered on the floor. A set of golden tridents, a couple battle axes, one looked like it was split in two. There was a battle in this room, both men could tell that, a large battle.   
  
Neither man could speak, they just walked around the room, looking at its contents. Though Travis had known the story of the pyramid, he did not know where the lost oasis had really gone. Granted, there was many trees and foliage inside the rooms, but not enough to warrant a large jungle. And the pygmies, where did they go? The one thing he did not know was the most of the oasis, including all its inhabitants, were sucked into the pit of hell that both Imhotep and the Scorpion King had fallen into. The pit it's self was now closed…nothing more then a bottom less hole.   
  
~~  
As they walked around the main chamber of the pyramid, Steven went through the black book very carefully. They were very lucky that the book was open, because they did not have the key, and by the looks of it, it was a very tricky lock. Yet, they had found it wide-open, much to their luck. His fingertips slowly ran over the hieroglyphs, as he mouthed the words to himself, he spent about five minutes on each page, studying the words and writing them down on a pad next to him. He was four pages into the book when he came across a spell that made his eyes widen. He read it over and over until he finally smiled. He had found the spell that would bring Imhotep back to earth.   
  
Since he was a child he had read about these mysterious happenings in Cairo and London. Six of the ten plagues had hit Cairo, causing mass destruction. Fire rained from the sky, flies and locust attacked, people were covered with boils and sores. All these strange happenings took place at the same time that people reported seeing a half-decomposed man walking around, who appeared to most people, almost mummy like. All the carnage stopped after a few days, and people put it out of their heads. But then, nine years later, people reported seeing mummies chasing after a bus in London. And part of the British Museum was destroyed.   
  
All these stories kept a young Steven interested in Egypt and finding out if the stories were true. Then he had heard rumors about the O'Connell family being involved somehow…just his luck that he worked with one of them. Now, he was in Egypt, about to come face to face with he who caused so much destruction, and he would bring Steven much power and wealth. All his life, everyone he ever knew told him that the stories were not true. Well, he would show them they were true.   
  
He looked over the spell. It was not an easy one, to bring someone back from hell. He would have to cut open his hand, so that his blood flowed freely. His eyes scanned the black page, reading all that had to be done to bring Imhotep back to earth. Those Egyptians thought of everything.   
  
~~  
The plane came down rather violently. It shook a lot and jumped a couple of times. Izzy had assured them it was because they were landing on dirt. When the plane came to a stop, everyone, including Izzy and Nick, let out a sigh of relief.   
  
"Well, remind me never to do that again." Said a rather grumpy Omar.   
"Then how are you going to get back?" Ameera said with a laugh.   
"I will walk. Or just go live with the sixth tribe, they are around here…speaking of which, where is here?"   
  
They had landed on top of a hill overlooking a large canyon, a river flowing through it.   
"We are at the end of Egypt. Sorry I couldn't of taken you all the way…but there is restricted air space and all…" Izzy said as he began to pull bags out of the plane.   
"We are going to have to hike the rest of the way." Ameera said softly. "It should take us the rest of today and part of tomorrow."  
  
Nick didn't like the sound of that, to bad they didn't have their horses anymore.   
"Come on, no time to waist. Izzy, are you going to wait for us or are you going to go on?"  
"I'll wait for ya. It isn't going to take to long, is it?"   
"Maybe one or two days. If there is anymore, you can go here." She handed him a small map.   
"This is the sixth tribe of the Med-jai. They will take care of you, give you food and such. They are not that far away and they will treat you very well."  
Izzy nodded. "Good luck to ya, friends. I will be here when ya get back."  
  
Ameera slung two bags on to her shoulders. "We are leaving you a large bag of food. It should hold you over for the next few days." She shook his hand. "Thank you for the ride Izzy, see you later." And with that, she started down a narrow path that led to the bottom of the canyon. The others soon followed.   
  
"Do you have any idea where we are going?" Nick asked, walking behind her.   
"I have a general idea, the oasis was at the end of the Blue Nile, and we are about a quarter the way into it. So…yes, I believe I do have an idea."  
  
Looking back, Nick saw Omar, Radhi and Haris. So far on the trip, neither of them had said more then ten words, if even that. He chuckled to himself and looked down the canyon they were walking into. It was long and large, the river flowing gently through. Nick imagined his relatives flying through here, on a boat, trying to find their son and get away from a giant wall of water. What a sight that must have been for his family…most likely not the strangest thing they had ever seen, though.   
  
The sun was high in the sky and the heat was almost unbearable. But they pressed on, in silence, in search for the very lost oasis of Ahm Shere.   
  
~~  
Steven joined Travis and Martin in the main chamber of the gold pyramid.   
"I found the spell." He said low into Travis' ear. "We will perform it tonight, after he goes to bed."  
"Great" Travis said back with a smile. Nick O'Connell be damned.   
  
Martin was to busy examining a pair of discarded golden tridents. He held them close to his eyes and scanned every inch of them. Little did he know that Evelyn O'Connell had dropped them there 65 years before. While Steven and Travis were talking, Martin tucked them in the back waist of his pants, un tucking his shirt so it flopped over them. Neither of the men noticed what he did, nor did they notice that he walked a little more straight.   
  
The rest of the afternoon was spent studying the contents of the pyramid. The diggers were finally given time off, so they spent the remainder of the day in what ever shade they could find, chatting about the things they had uncovered.   
  
Travis and Steven worked in the main chamber, clearing away rubble and setting up the large, flat, oil lamps. Martin worked in the small room outside the main chamber, where Evy and Anuck-su-namun had fought each other. He dusted off the walls and stood things back up.   
Humming softly to himself. Every once in a while, he got bits and pieces of the conversation Travis and Steven were having in the other room. But he tried not to pay attention to it.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Going to be getten' some Imhotep action in the next chapter. WOO HOO! For such a bad guy, that man is a fox. 


	5. Welcome back, Imhotep.

As before promised, its time to bring Imhotep back around. Plus, we get to find out whats going on with Ameera & Nick. (Who was an Alex, but Angie made me realize that that would be really confusing...so....)  
Enjoy, keep the reviews coming. NMGS  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Oh my god…" Nick muttered with a sigh. They had been hiking down the river for somewhere around six hours, with only a half an hour break half way in, for a quick lunch.   
"Having issues?" Ameera, still at the head of the group, called back.   
"Shut up." Nick said under his breath.   
  
The Med-jai, used to such extreme ways of life and travel, did not seem to mind the muggy 110-degree weather they had walked into. Nick couldn't see how they could go on the way they did…they were wearing dark clothes…carrying about twenty extra pounds on their backs. Nick, who walked next to the fearless female leader for the first hour of the hike, had now fallen to the back, pushing himself as hard as he could to just keep up. This sucked. The sun was now hanging low in the sky, and would set in the next hour or so.   
  
"Any one know what time it is?" He called to the warriors. They all looked at each other but no one made a dash for a watch of any kind, so they did not answer him.   
"Wouldn't you have a watch?" Omar asked, looking back at Nick.   
"I gave up on the concept of time a while ago." He said, looking up into the sky, trying to judge the time by the sun.   
  
"That's a Med-jai trait." Haris said, speaking for the first time since…well…they had left Cairo.   
"Yes it is." Ameera said, not slowing her pace. "But, by the way the sun is, I would say it is around seven o'clock."  
  
Nick nodded his head, not that she could see him do it, and became silent again. Adjusting his pack so it was just a little bit easier to carry.   
  
About an hour later, the sun set into the ground, bringing up brilliant colors of deep reds, pinks peaches, purples, and orange. After the sun fell out of sight, the bright colors were replaced with much more mellow hues of violets, peaches, and yellows. It was a beautiful sight, and everyone slowed down a little to watch it pass. As the sky began to die out for the day, the Med-jai reached into their packs and pulled out, of all things, large "Maglight" flashlights. Nick racked his brain to understand why these Bedouin people would have such a thing, but decided against asking. They were not that far outside what most people would call normal society.   
  
He rummaged around in his own bag until he found his own "Maglight", and turned it on, messing with the beam until he got it just right. As dusk settled, the crickets began to make noise, filling the silent air with their soft songs. It was another hour until they stopped, and Nick saw Ameera and Omar pointing their flashlights up on to the side of the large rock wall. Nick stepped up next to them and pointed his flashlight up to where theirs was. They had been pointing up to a cave, about ten feet up the wall.   
  
"Think we should stay there tonight?" Ameera asked out loud, looking to both men for an answer.   
"Seems ok to me." Omar said, "It's up high, so no animal's could get in and it would be a good look out for any trouble. I say we go for it."  
"I'm with him. I doesn't matter much to me, as long as we stop." Nick said, knowing that both Med-jai were rolling their eyes at him.   
  
"Alright, then there it is." Ameera said, with a grunt and a sigh, she flopped both her bags on to the ground. The rest followed suit, stretching out their arms before lugging the packs back on, to climb the wall up to the cave. Omar had gone ahead to see that the cave was big enough and nothing was already there, all was clear, so they handed his bags up to him, then started the tiny climb. It was rather easy, for there were many foot holes and places to grab onto. Ameera went up first, followed by Nick, then the Silent Ones, as the Brit had taken to calling them. When they all got into the cave, they discovered how spacious it was. One very large room, with a smaller room off to the side, in which they unloaded their bags. In the back of the cave, instead of a wall, was a large drop, leading to the pool of water underneath.   
  
"There must be an under water cave that leads to the Nile outside." Nick said out load, to no one in particular. From somewhere, the Silent Ones pulled out two small lanterns, and lit them, casting a low light on the cave. They unrolled all the bedrolls, and flopped down on them, all tired after the long day they had. Omar made a very small fire towards the back of the cave, big enough to heat a small amount of food over. He had pulled a small bundle of sticks out of his bag, and had started the fire with matches.   
  
Just where were they keeping all this stuff? Nick thought, looking on. He also wondered just what sort of things they had stuffed into the packs they had brought with them. Lord knows there was most likely a kitchen sink in there somewhere.   
Diner was a helping of cooked meat, (He didn't want to know what kind of meat it was, but it tasted like chicken) some fruits, (dates, orange slices, a fig.) a piece of cheese and bread. And, much to Nick's enjoyment, goat's milk. (He had to try his hardest not to spit the disgusting liquid out, every time he took a bitter sip.) Then, much to everyone's surprise an joy, Radhi pulled out a large, malted, chocolate candy bar, breaking it into five equal pieces and handing it out.   
  
After diner, everyone settled down and enjoyed the cool night air in the cave. The Silent ones kept a first watch, sitting at the edge of the cave looking out into the Blue Nile. Ameera and Omar talked, in Arabic, about something or another. Every now and then, Nick picked up words, but wasn't really paying attention. He was busy reading a book by flashlight, every once and a while adjusting his body weight to turn the pages. He was laying on his stomach, arms holding his head up. After a long while, he heard Omar climb on to his bedroll and attempt to fall asleep, the Silent Ones were still at guard, and Ameera was using her flashlight to study the map she had removed from the Med-jai vault. Nick smiled and pushed himself up, careful not to disturb Omar, whose bedroll was close to his. He sat up, stretched a little, and turned to Ameera, whose bedroll was right next to Nick's.  
  
"Hi." He said softly, causing her to look up at him, somewhat surprised.   
"Hi!" She said softly back, placing the map down.   
"Whatcha doin'?"  
  
"Just checkin' up on some things." She smiled softly, staring into his eyes, "You doing ok?"  
"I'm going to be a little sore, but I think I will be ok with everything."  
"Good. I was worried you weren't going to make it on the hike today, I fear you are not used to this sort of life."  
  
"Your fears are true, I am not used to it at all." He chuckled, "You know, I thought that life as an adventurer was going to be more easy. Guess I was wrong, eh?"  
"You would be surprised, Nick. The life I lead is not as fantastic as you dream it to be. It is just a normal life…with more danger added to it."  
  
He nodded but did not say anything, after a minute, he finally sighed. "How much more do we have to go?"  
"We should get there late tomorrow morning. Hopefully, they have not uncovered the Book of the Dead…hopefully we can get through this peacefully."  
"Peacefully? I wouldn't have considered you a pacifist."  
  
"There is much you don't know about me, O'Connell." She let out the faintest hint of a bright smile, and laid back on her bedroll, turning off her flashlight. "Sleep well." She said softly and turned her back to him, covering her self with a thin blanket.   
  
Nick looked her over, his mind filling with all sorts of daydreams that could never happen. He sighed and yawned, then fell back on his own thin bedroll. After the hike and a nights sleep on the hard cave floor, he was going to be damn sore in the morning.   
  
~~  
Steven and Travis looked at each other, evil smiles on their faces, as they climbed down the large hole where the top half of the pyramid sat in. It was nearing midnight as they entered the pyramid door, making their way down its deep staircase and towards the main chamber. In one arm, Steven held the Book of the Dead, pages open, and in the other hand he held a large, gold, knife. They made their way into the large, now cleaned up, main chamber. Travis lit the massive flat oil lamps, casting light everywhere, as Steven sat up the Book and the knife, next to the largest crack in the floor. Which led down to a dark, bottomless, pit.   
  
Once Travis was done lighting the lamps, he kneeled down next to Steven, who was looking at the book rather nervously.   
"Ready?" Travis asked.   
"Ready." Steven replayed; he took the knife in his right hand, and drew it across his left palm, carving a deep wound. He winced a little, but showed no other indication that it hurt. Travis watched on as Steven began to read from the black Book of the Dead, the strange words filling the silent chamber. He spoke for a minute, then held his cut hand over the large crack in the wall, squeezing it into a fist so that blood dripped down his hand and into the bark pit. As the blood dripped down, he spoke some more, reading the same spell over again.   
  
Suddenly, a strange light began to come up from the deep pit. It was small and weak at first, then got larger and stronger. A loud noise filled the chamber, but could not drown out the words Steven spoke.   
  
~~  
Martin Adams stood behind a large stone pillar, watching Steven and Travis' every move. He had been weary of them since they uncovered the pyramid, and now he knew he was right. They were doing something, although Martin couldn't really tell what. Steven was reading from the black book they had uncovered, and seemed to have cut his hand. Why though? He leaned in a little closer, careful not to make any indication that he was there.   
  
~~  
Travis stared on silently, as he watched what took place around him. The light got brighter, and then there was this load crack. The hole had split open, the floor rumbled, and Steven went on reading from the book, holding his hand over the pit, squeezing in more of his blood. Suddenly, the light from the pit got so bright, he had to close his eyes and turn his head away, and the noise could have broken glass it was so loud. After a few long seconds of that, it all stopped.   
Slowly, he turned back to the pit, and saw with awe the sight in front of him.   
  
A man floated in front of Steven and Travis, a large man, maybe six-foot-three, very tan, and very clean-shaven. He was limp, head lying off to one side, eyes closed, hands and legs lying there. Steven reached out and grabbed the man's right hand and drew the knife across it. No blood came out, but there was a clear cut in the skin. Steven then cut his own hand a little more, so more blood would flow, then placed their hands together, closing the man's hand tightly around his own. There was yet another bright light that caused Travis to look away.   
  
When he looked up, finally, the tall man stood in front of them, looking at both men strangely, like he had no idea what was going on. Steven and the man were still holding hands, a bright red light seeping through the cracks of their hands. After a second, the light withdrew from the inside, causing both men to suck in deeply then collapse.   
  
~~  
Martin could not believe what was going on in front of his eyes…a man just rose from the cracks of the floor…and was now alive! What the hell was going on?  
  
~~  
Travis scrambled over to Steven and helped him up, but he was very shaky and weak, and could barely stand up on his own. The other man stood up as well, a bit shaken, weak, and confused. He looked at the men, then looked around the room. Memories flooding back to him like a river.   
He had been here before, battling the white man with the funny voice. His child was there…so was the reincarnated princess. His own princess was there…but she had not helped him. What was her name?   
Oh, yes, Anuck-su-nabitch.   
  
"My lord, Imhotep." Steven said with a small bow of the head, "Welcome back."  
Imhotep turned and stared at the two men…they brought him back, but why?  
"Why am I here?" He asked, voice deep as it spoke the Egyptian words.   
"We have brought you back to let you do what you have failed twice before. The people who fought you so long ago are now all dead, so there is no one to bother your plans."  
  
Imhotep's lips curled into a slight, evil smile, "What year is it?"  
"It is year1999, my lord."  
Imhotep smiled and began to walk around the room, running his hands along the large gong and weapons they had picked up from the floor.   
"This time," He said softly, "I will not fail."   
  
~~   
Ameera Bay woke up with a start. Had she really just seen the creature being brought back to earth? She breathed in deeply for a minute, trying to figure out if what she had just seen was real, or the dream it seemed to be.   
  
She looked over at Nick, who was sleeping soundly, and then she propped herself up on her elbows, looking around. Omar was still asleep, Haris had gone to bed as well, and now Radhi was the only one on watch. With a quiet sigh, she stood up and crossed to Radhi, sitting down next to him.  
  
"If you want, you can go to sleep now. I will keep watch." She said softly.   
"Are you sure, Ameera?" He asked softly back.  
"Yeah, I wont be able to fall asleep for a while any ways. Go to bed, get some rest."  
  
Radhi nodded and smiled, then stood up and crossed to his own bedroll. Ameera watched him for a minute and then turned her attention back to the calm night before her. The moon was hanging high over head, casting a low light over the Blue Nile and the cave they were all sleeping in. She sighed and looked around, nothing was moving and the only sound was that of crickets.   
She adjusted her body weight and pulled out a knife from her robe. It was the only weapon of hers she never took off her body while sleeping away from her home. It was a ten-inch knife with a five and a half-inch blade taking up most of the inches. The handle made of wood, broken off at the end with a little lump of duct tape at the very end. The blade itself was dirty and slightly rusted at the base. On one side of the base, carved words read, ""Robeson Sharldae, No. 20", on the other side, was simply, "U.S.N." It was a very old knife, given to her by her great-grandfather when she was only ten. It was her lucky knife and she never went anywhere with out it.   
  
She turned the knife over in her hands, staring at it in the soft moonlight, when she heard some movement behind her. Turning, she saw Nick making his tired way towards her.   
"Whatcha doing up?" He asked, sleepily.   
"Keeping watch." She said softly, as though not to wake the others.   
  
"Hum." Nick sat down next to her, looking out at the river then at her. There was silence for a minute, until Nick finally spoke.   
"What do you think we are going to find tomorrow?"  
"I don't know. I have the strangest feeling that we are to late, and that they have already brought back the creature."  
"Why do you think that?"  
"I just…feel it in my bones."  
  
Nick nodded. "But, we are going to be able to stop them, right?"  
"Hopefully. I have got some of the best warriors on our side, but unfortunately, we don't know who they have on their side."  
"I have seen Steven York fight, and it is not a pretty sight. He is a large and strong man, and he does not give up…"  
  
Ameera shook her head with a smile. "You damn Englishmen…always messing with stuff you shouldn't even go near. This is the third time someone from your little island has brought back the creature."  
"In all fairness, the first time was an accident…"  
"I know that, but the point remains…you people are trouble."  
  
Nick couldn't help but laugh, she was right. "That's how it will always be, Ameera, we will bring about trouble, and you Med-jai will help us out of it. That is the whole reason any of us are even here."  
She let out a soft chuckle then handed the knife to Nick, blade held firmly between her thumb and forefinger.   
  
"You might like to look at this. It was once Rick's."  
"Really?" He took the knife by the handle, and held it close to his eyes. "Why do you have it?"  
"It was given to me by Ardeth."  
"U.S.N. United States Navy…"  
  
"From the story I was told, this knife was given to Rick as a present from a man he met in a Cairo bar one night. They didn't even learn each other's names; they just got to talking, and talked the whole night. When the man finally left, he gave this knife to Rick and told him to pass it on to someone else when he was done. So, Rick took the knife and had it for years, until, shortly after Ardeth met Emily, he gave it to Ardeth. Telling him the same thing, pass it on to someone else when you are done with it. Ardeth had it right on up to his…" She stopped short, still finding it hard to talk about what had happened 17 years before. Nick knew what she meant, so he didn't ask. "Anyway, he gave it to me and told me the same thing, and I have had it ever since."  
  
"That's a great story…" Nick said softly, holding the weapon in his hand to get the feel of it. "Why didn't Ardeth give it to his son, though?"  
"I don't know…he never said. All I know, is he gave it to me, and one day, I will give it to someone else. Probity my heir." She laughed softly, "That would mean I would have to find a husband first."   
Then she cursed herself in her thoughts for saying that out loud, to him.  
"You um…you involved with anyone?" He asked shyly, avoiding her eyes.   
"No…you?" She tried to sound pleasant.  
"No." There was a silence, then both of them chuckled. Neither one could believe they were having that conversation with the other.   
  
"What are you going to do when you get married? Are you going to take his last name?"  
"Though it is custom to take the husbands last name, I will not take mine. I think that was one reason the Elders were so…apprehensive about allowing a female to be chieftain, they were afraid that the Bays would no longer be the leaders of the Med-jai. Like we have been for over 2000 years now.  
  
"So, no, I will not take my husbands last name, and who ever my heir would be, they will also be a Bay. I wont let my family name die out like that." She thought for a second. "Would you allow your…future wife…to keep her last name?"  
  
"Maybe. It would have to have a special reason for her to keep it. For instance, if, and this is for the sake of the conversation only, but if me and you were to get married…" He stopped short from the look of pure surprise she was giving him. "Like I said, for the sake of the conversation. But if we were to…wed…I would let you…um…keep your last name, and our kids…uh…would have your last name as well…"  
  
Ameera's eyes were as big as diner plates. There was another minute of awkward silence, until she finally spoke up.   
"That's…very noble of you Nick…" More silence. After a minute, Nick handed her back her knife and began to stand up.  
  
"Where are you going?" She asked, looking up at him.   
"I figured I would leave the conversation on…that strange note."  
"No, no…it's ok. Stay here, keep me company." She smiled at him.   
  
"Ok." He sat back down and looked out at the starry sky. "Beautiful, isn't it?" He asked softly.   
"Yes, it is. I could never live in a place where I couldn't see the stars." She said softly  
"In London, you can hardly see the stars at all. It is even worse in America, can't see a bloody star in some places."  
  
"You've spent some time in America?"  
"Yeah, spent a year there. Just got back about six months ago."  
"Why were you there?"  
  
"The museum took one of their Egypt exhibits on the road, toured all over that country. I was sent along as the curator of it all. It was a lot of fun, spent a month in twelve different major cities, LA, Seattle, New York, Washington D.C, Chicago, and a few other places. It was really nice…strange place, that country. Filled with a lot of odd people."  
"Well, your part American, you know." Ameera said with a smile.   
  
"So are you." He shot back. It was true, Rick was American and so was Emily.   
"So, I take it you enjoyed yourself there."  
"I did. But I was happy to get back to London, it is hard not being able to sleep in your own bed for that long…but I trust you know that already."  
"I have had the bedroll for five years now, that thing is a second bed to me. So it is not that hard."  
  
"America is a strange place, but I wouldn't mind going back one day. I really enjoyed Seattle, reminded me of London. Nice people there to."  
"I don't think I will ever visit America, I don't think I will ever even leave Egypt. I don't mind though sometimes I do get bored with everyday life here."  
"Well, I will make you a deal, one day, I will take you to Seattle or even London, just so you can see another part of the world. A more…green…part of the world."  
  
She thought about it for a minute and smiled, holding out her hand. "Deal." She said, shaking his hand.   
  
She drew her legs up close to her chest, and wrapped her arms around them, resting her chin on her knees. Ameera sat looking out at the river below them, and Nick sat looking at her, when suddenly, she felt him move closer to her, but she didn't look towards him. After a minute, he moved even closer, this times, she looked at him, and that's when it happened.   
  
He leaned in quickly and kissed her gently, resting his lips on hers, and she didn't pull away. The kiss didn't last long, their lips nearly sat on each other's, and when it broke, they looked at each other softly. In one quick movement, she stood up, blushing and turning away, but he, now standing, placed one hand around the back of her neck and pulled her into him, lips locking on to each other. He gently parted her lips with his tongue, and slid it into her mouth. This was not Ameera's first kiss, and was certainly not Nick's. Her hand moved up to the back of his neck, as his dropped down to her back, holding her firmly in that place. His other hand was over her ear, his thumb resting lightly against her temple, his other four fingers intertwined in her hair. Her other hand placed on his side.   
  
After a minute, when the kiss broke, she slowly opened her eyes to make sure she wasn't dreaming, but saw him burning a hole into her with his own eyes. Then his face broke into a thin smile and pulled her lips to him again, but she pushed away.   
  
"No…"She said softly…placing her hands on his chest and pushing him back. His one arm at her back held her to him with strength she had never seen in him.   
"What is it…?"He asked, voice low in her ear.   
"This is not right," She let slip out.  
  
"Not right? Why?"  
"It just isn't right...me and you…doing this…it's not right."  
"Why?" She could hear the anger rising in his voice.   
"Because of…who we both are…" She also let that one slip out, and immediately regretted opening her mouth.   
  
"Who we are?" He pushed her away from him, anger boiling in his blood. "Who we are? Who are we? You mean a Med-jai and a common Englishman? What, you don't think it's right for us to kiss because of that?" He shook his head bitterly. "I would have thought you were above that image, Ameera, I would have thought you wouldn't have cared about that."  
  
"Wait…it's not what you think…"  
"I am afraid it is what I think. Good night." He turned on his heal and walked back to where his bedroll was. Leaving her, mouth agape, trying to figure out how one minute she was kissing this man, and the net he was pissed off at her. She stared at him for a second, then turned around, sitting down again. Her hand rose to cover her eyes, her thumb and middle finger gently rubbing her temples. What the hell had just happened?  
  
Turning back, she saw that he was now laying on his bedroll, face hidden from her. She felt like crying. Since the day she saw him, she was trying to hide her feelings from herself and him. Then, suddenly, they popped up when they kissed, and then were stepped on. Granted, she shouldn't have said the wrong thing, but if he let her explain.   
  
Hell, she thought with a sigh, I can't even explain to my self why I stopped him from kissing me again. She sat in the silence of her thoughts for a real long time, finally, she looked up and saw that the moon was now far off to the side of the sky, and it was time for her to be relieved of her position. She sighed and stood up, silently crossing to where her males were sleeping, and with a sinking heart, she saw that her bedroll, that was next to Nick, was now next to Radhi…on the other side of the cave from Nick's. She leaned down and woke up Omar, telling him it was time for him to keep watch, and with a grumble of cuss words, he stood up and took his place as guard. As she laid down and tried to fall asleep.   
  
~~  
Martin had just barely made it back to his tent when he heard Steven, Travis, and Imhotep walked up into the campgrounds. They talked in low voices, speaking ancient Egyptian, so there were few that could understand them. Martin laid back on his cot and listened to that they were saying.   
  
"My lord, what do you wish to do?"  
"I wish to go to Humanaptra, get the book of the living, and begin what I have planned. I must go back, to regain my powers."  
"And what plans would that be?"  
"Those are matters that do not concern you at this time. I will leave tomorrow, if you are with me or not."  
"Yes, my lord. We have a boat waiting to take you up the Blue Nile."  
"Good, good."   
  
Martin heard a tent door open and saw a light turn on somewhere out in the darkness. The voices became muffled, so Martin rolled over and tried to fall asleep, but such a thing would be hopeless tonight.  
  
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I am hopeing you all assumed that Martin can understand Egyptian, hense he could understand the conversation between Imhotep & the boys.   
  
I didnt want Imhotep to go through all the, "having to suck people dry to be whole and human" thing, so he didnt. I imagin that he would not really decompose in hell.....whatever. Any who, he's back. 


	6. In the morning....

Ah....lovers angst, I love writing it. Thanks for what reviews I have gotten, thus far. Keep 'em coming. Enjoy this short chapter, the battle is coming up.   
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When Ameera opened her eyes, she saw low sunlight streaming into the cave. She also saw Omar and Haris milling around. She turned over and thought of the events of the night before…had she really seen the creature's rebirth? Had she really kissed Nick then drive him away?   
The last thought made her grown, and she stood up, stretching out her sore muscles. Both Nick and Radhi were still sleeping; Nick's back turned towards her. She sighed and joined the two other warriors by the mouth of the cave.   
  
"How did you sleep, cousin?" Omar said with a tired smile, as she sat down next to him.  
"Not very well, I am afraid." She told them about the dream and all that she had seen in it. When she was done, they both stared at her, eyes wide then slowly nodded. They both agreed with her that she had seen the rebirth of the creature, and that they were in for more trouble then they had hoped for.   
  
"Omar, join me," Ameera said as she started to climb down from the cave, "I wish to wash up a little before we start off today."  
Omar nodded and followed her down.   
"I need your help." She said softly, walking a short distance away from the cave mouth and dropping into the sand next to the river.   
  
"With what?"  
"Me and Nick…kissed last night."  
"WHAT?!"  
"We kissed…"  
  
"Start from the beginning." He said, dropping down next to her.   
She sighed and told him the story as she splashed water on her face. When she got done, she looked up at her cousin, who was staring at her, a strange smile on his face.   
  
"I knew it!" He gasped, throwing his hands up in joy. "I knew you liked him! And I knew he liked you! How sweet, my cousin is falling in love."  
"I am not!" She hissed bitterly.   
  
"You are to! Otherwise you wouldn't care so much about him being mad at you!"  
"Omar, come here." She said as sweetly as she could. He moved closer to her, expecting her to whisper something to him. Instead she smacked him hard upside the head.  
  
"Hey!" He jumped back. "What was that for?"  
"For being an ass!" She spat. "Seriously! What am I going to do? If we have to go into battle today, I don't want him being mad at me! it would affect both of us in bad ways! Will you just tell me what to say to him?"  
  
"Yes, I could. For I am the master of what to say when a lover is mad at you." He ducked to miss the slap she aimed at him.   
"HA!"  
"What?"  
  
"Every time we go in to Cairo, you pick up a different girl! Of course you would know what to say to them, you have to if they catch you with another woman! God only knows how many times I have had to intercept a girl coming after you with rage in her eyes."  
  
"Do you want to know or not?"  
"Yes!"  
"Then shut up. All you have to do is tell him the truth, that you are attracted to him, but was afraid to admit your feelings. And once you started to kiss, you got all mixed up and said the wrong thing."  
  
"Half of that's not true, though."  
"So. People love to hear it, believe me. it will calm him down, and maybe you will get some more kisses out of him." He wasn't able to duck fast enough, her hand came in contact with the side of his head so quickly, and he barely knew what hit him.  
  
"Your very violent for someone who is asking for my help."  
"Oh, shut up Omar." She stood up and smoothed out her robes, he did the same.  
  
"Just talk to him Ameera, not as a Queen or a warrior or a Med-jai, just talk to him as the woman you are."  
She sighed as she started to climb the side of the wall.   
  
To her surprise and somewhat joy, Nick was still asleep when they got back. And she didn't mind at all. Radhi got up after a half an hour and Nick finally got up a half-hour after that. Shooting Ameera dirty looks and muttering under his breath. Omar nudged her close to him with his elbow, but she had yet to approach him.   
  
"Go, talk to him." Omar whispered in her ear as they ate breakfast. "If you don't, you will regret it."  
"Nick, come help me pack some stuff away." She said, forcing herself to sound civil and powerful.   
  
Nick just sat there; he looked at her for a second, and turned back to his food. With a sigh, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him up, dragging him to the back of the cave.   
  
"What the hell do you think you are doing?" He hissed, yanking his arm out of her grip.   
"We need to talk." She hissed back.   
"We have nothing to talk about."  
  
"Yes we do!"  
Nick looked at her, anger flashing in his eyes. "No, we don't. It's done, over with, no more. Forget it, ok?"  
"No, I will not! Look, I made a mistake; I was feeling…hell I don't know what I was feeling. Look, I said the wrong thing, and I am sorry."  
"It's not going to make it any better."  
"Nick…!"  
  
"Ameera!" Omar's voice echoed slightly from the mouth of the cave, "I think you should have a look at this."  
With a sigh, she crossed to where her cousin was standing, pair of binoculars in his hands.   
  
"Look down there and tell me what you see." He handed her the binoculars and pointed down the river, in the direction on Ahm Shere. She placed them to her eyes and adjusted them for a second, and scanned the river. Then she let out a gasp.   
  
A boat was coming up the river, carrying many men, and heading right towards them.   
"Nick, did you family ever tell you what Imhotep looked like?"  
"What? Why?" He asked, anger still in his voice.   
"Did Evy, Rick, or Alex ever describe to you what Imhotep looks like…regenerated."  
  
"Yeah, tall, about six-two, really tan and muscular, handsome, and bald everywhere. Why?"  
"Because he is going to pass us in about five minutes, that's why." She handed him the binoculars and pointed in the direction of the boat. "Do you recognize any of the men on that boat?"  
  
Nick looked at it, moving the binoculars around until he landed on the face of Steven York, standing next to Imhotep and Travis Ripkin. Just behind them, a look of fright and confusion on his face sat Martin Adams.   
  
"Oh my god…" He gasped, lowering the binoculars, "They have brought him back…Steven and Travis brought him back!"  
  
"You damn Englishmen…" Ameera said, under her breath. "Get ready people, we are not going to let them out of this river, we are not going to let the creature get out of this day alive."   
  
Radhi and Haris came up behind them, riffles in hand, while Ameera ran and got her scimitars holstered. Nick rummaged around his pack till he found a gun of his own, while Omar watched as the boat got closer.   
  
"What will the fate of your college's be?" Ameera asked Nick as she loaded one of the riffles.   
"What?" He asked back, rather shocked at the question.   
"Are they going to live or die?"  
  
"I…I…I don't know…"  
"By Med-jai law, they awoke the creature. So they must die for that. But as you know, we don't always follow that rule. So what is it going to be? Are they going to live or die?"  
Nick was stunned, he knew they had to kill Imhotep, but kill Steven, Travis, and Martin?   
  
"Let's deal with that when it comes up, eh?" She said, watching as his mind came close to exploding. He nodded and pulled out his gun, making sure it was loaded.   
"They are closer, we've got a good shot at the driver. The boat is filled with Imhotep's followers Ameera, those who went with him the first time to Ahm Shere." Omar said, still standing in the cave mouth.   
  
"I thought they fell apart after Ahm Shere…"  
"Well, their back."   
  
Ameera stood next to her cousin and aimed her riffle. If she took the shot, she would give away their hiding spot and have the men on the boat coming after them, ready to kill, and it was their nine to her five.   
  
"Do I take it?" She asked Omar.   
"Will you have the shot when they pass?"  
"Yeah, looks like it."   
"Take it then, but for now, get down everyone, or they will see us."  
  
~~  
Imhotep knew they were being watched, and his eyes drifted to a cave on the side of one of the rock walls they were going past. He also knew that it was not likely that he would see the sunset on that day.   
  
He kept quiet about the cave; not wanting to spoil whatever those in it had planed. As the boat passed the cave, he looked in and tried to see something, but all he saw was lumps on the floor of the cave. Could be rocks, but most likely humans.   
  
~~  
"Tell me when you got the shot." Omar said, watching the boat pass the cave, Imhotep looking right at them.   
  
"He knows." Nick whispered, "He knows we're here."  
"Let him know." Ameera whispered back, as she aimed the riffle at the man driving the midsize boat. "I have the shot."  
"Take it."  
  
And she did. The sound of the gun going off priced the air, causing everyone on the boat to duck and look up towards the cave. Everyone except the red & black that was at the wheel, for he was slumped down dead.   
  
"Here we go." Ameera whispered as the boat came to a stop, and everyone on it jumped out into the water, making their armed way towards the cave.   
  
~~  
"You told me those who could stop me were long dead." Imhotep hissed as he waded through the waist deep water.   
"My lord, you should stay behind, we wouldn't want anything to happen to you."  
  
"No, it has been long enough since I have killed a Med-jai, and I will not pass the chance now."  
Steven and Travis stopped short. How could the Med-jai be here? How could they have….  
  
"O'Connell." Travis gasped.   
"He is now truly a dead man, Travis, lets go." Steven said through clinched teeth.   
No one noticed that Martin had stayed behind on the boat.   
  
~~  
"What do we do?" Nick whispered as the small army got closer to them.   
"Get to the spell, and read it. The rest of us will take them down." Ameera nodded her head towards the opening of the cave.   
Nick nodded and looked her right in the eye. "Be careful." He said softly.   
  
"You to." Ameera made her way back to the mouth of the cave as Nick tore his pack apart to find the folded up rubbing of the spell.   
"Hand to hand? Or are you going to take them out right now?" Ameera asked Omar.   
  
"Hand to hand…"   
"You go after his followers," She told the three other Med-jai. "Imhotep is mine."  
"You sure about that?"  
"Positive, if I need help, I will let you know, believe me. Now get down to them, before they get up to us."  
The three warriors nodded and tore out their scimitars.   
  
"Ameera…" Omar said softly, looking at his cousin.   
"I know, I will be. You to."   
  
Omar nodded and stood at the mouth of the cave, showing himself to the men below, and with the battle cry of his people, dropped out of sight, Radhi and Haris right behind him.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Ever notice how, in TMR, at the end, our heros ride off into the sunset? Then did you realize that it must have only been somewhere around...what....8 in the morning? Remember? The whole, sunrise, pyramid bit. & the scene in the jungle the night before....plus, the last battle secen couldnt have taken more then...what...an hour at the most?!   
So it was still morning when our heros ride off into the SUNSET! Where did the day go?   
That just popped into my mind. Even in the book, it says they ride into the sunset...and it is still morning! *grumble* Its just like the whole, Rick's tattoo & Alex's age thing.   
  
Hey...next chapter...battle time. YAY! And in a few more, the beautiful Ardeth stops by. 


	7. "I'm not the only one..."

I promised a battle scene, and by god, you are getting one. Most of this chapter came to me while in a pool. And it must have look rather strange to my mom, seeing me thrash around in the water, acting the scene out. (i do this, i act out my stories. Say the diologe...talk to my self...its just what i do. Angie knows...she watched me do it. "Did you sleep with him?!?!" "Well, not in the slange meaning of the word...." She will understand.) Anyway, heres the chapter.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Forget about these foolish men, my lord." Steven said, pulling Imhotep aside. "There is more in the cave."  
  
"That I know." Imhotep hissed as the sound of metal on metal filled the air. He, Steven, and Travis made their way around the small battle, and started to climb the wall into the cave. The Med-jai below were too busy to notice.   
  
It was four to three, which in most cases, would have been a simple victory for one side or the other…but both sides were skilled warriors, and both sides wouldn't give up or give in.   
  
~~  
"Nick, stay in that little space, don't come out." Ameera said, heart pounding, as the first hand appeared on the bottom of the cave mouth.   
"I am not going to let them come in here and kill you." He said back, still tearing his pack apart. "Two to three is better then one to three."  
  
"Where is the spell?"  
"I don't know! It was here!"  
"Nick, damnit, find that thing."  
"I'm looking, I'm looking."  
  
Ameera ducked into the smaller room and pulled Nick close to the back of it, so those entering could not see them.   
"What the…"  
"SHHH!"  
  
"O'Connell!" They heard Travis yell, "Hey O'Connell! Come on out, no hard feelings on everything."  
Imhotep looked around the cave, a thin smile on his lips.   
"Come on O'Connell, we're not going to hurt ya, we just want to talk."  
  
"What are we going to do?" Nick whispered.   
Ameera handed him one of her scimitars. "You know how to use this?"  
"Um…no."   
  
"Simple, hold it at the handle, swing in towards whoever you are fighting, aim for the chest, neck, or side. And try and not get hit with whatever they are going to be fighting you with."  
  
He nodded and took the long sword in his hands. Faint sounds from the small battle outside were rising up into the cave, and from the sounds of footsteps, the men were at the back of the cave.   
"Let me go out first." Ameera whispered. "Someone is standing right next to the entrance ready to kill the first person who goes out."  
  
"How do you know?"  
"Because only two men are walking, and three came in."   
  
Ameera slowly steeped over the bags they had brought with them, scimitar held in front of her, ready to take on he who stood on the outside. And she didn't have to wait long. As she stepped out of the smaller cave, blade in front of her body, another sword shot out from the outside, aimed right at her midsection, in one quick movement, she blocked the blow and pushed herself away from the opening of the smaller cave. Coming face to face with Imhotep himself. Before he could think, she dove at him, knocking him from the entrance, giving Nick a clear way out.   
~~  
Steven and Travis both turned at the grunts that came up from Imhotep and Ameera, watching on as the two-exchanged blow after blow, and blocking everyone, Ameera with her long scimitar, Imhotep with a long gold sword of his own. Travis nudged Steven and pointed at Nick, who had slowly came out of the smaller cave, holding the other scimitar out in front of his body. Travis made the first dash at him, Steven close behind. This was going to be easy.   
~~  
At least, that's what they thought. Travis made it to Nick first, holding a sword of his own, ready to kill the man, Steven close behind, gold knife in his hand that he had used the night before. But a larger body intercepted him, throwing him to the ground.   
~~  
Omar forced Steven to the ground, punching him and knocking the knife out of his hand, but Steven would not be held down for long. He forced the Med-jai off of him, grabbing his knife and throwing himself at the man, knocking him to the ground this time.   
~~  
Travis aimed a well-placed blow at nick's chest, but he ducked out of the way just in time, bringing the scimitar up and blocking the blow. He wasn't too bad at wielding the sword.   
~~  
Ameera grunted as she twisted to the side, missing the blow that Imhotep had aimed at her. She brought the scimitar up and slashed at his chest, but he jumped back just in time. Giving him a second to look over whom he was fighting. Much to Imhotep's surprise, he was fighting a woman!  
  
"A female Med-jai?" he hissed, staring her down.  
She nodded her head and shot him an evil smile.   
"A female Med-jai who is going to kick your ass." She shot back and lunged at him, catching his own blade with hers, twisting it down, and bringing up her foot, kicking him into the back wall of the cave. He threw himself to the side, missing the point of her blade by inches. He dropped low with his knees, kicking on foot out and bringing her feet out from under her, she landed on the ground with a grunt, and he was on top of her in a split second, bringing his sword down to her neck. As her blade shot up to block the blow.   
~~  
Omar head butted Steven and kicked him back, stumbling up and diving at him, sword raised, ready to kill. Steven jumped back, bringing his knife around and jabbing at Omar. The two met with such force that both weapons shot out of their hands and landed on the floor with a load clang. Steven jumped at Omar, managing to get him fingers around the Med-jai's neck.  
~~  
Nick dove at Travis, knocking him to the ground and his sword out of his hands. But Travis got his feet up and kicked Nick back, slamming him into the floor. He was up in a second, and dove at Travis again, this time the later was not able to react in much time, and Nick got a well-aimed blow to his side. Travis screamed in pain and threw Nick off him, managing to get his own sword and get up at the same time. One hand shooting to his new cut; it was not deep at all, but still hurt like hell.   
~~  
Omar got in another solid head butt, slamming his forehead into Steven's nose. Steven jumped back and let go of his neck. Omar dove at him, throwing him closer to the mouth of the cliff. Steven threw himself forward, not at Omar, but at his weapon. He got a solid grip on the handle as Omar grabbed his legs and pulled him back. Steven twisted around and kicked at Omar, sending him stumbling back. But he quickly regained himself, standing at the very mouth of the cave. Steven dove at him, knife held out, he got in one nice slash across Omar's upper arm before both men fell out of the cave, both landing in the sand below with a grunt. And both going at each other the second they hit the ground.   
~~  
Radhi and Haris were finishing off the last two red & black's but it was not that easy, the skilled warriors going after each other with rage in their eyes.   
~~  
Ameera twisted but could not get out of the grip Imhotep had on her. Finally she stopped struggling and looked up at him, death burning in her eyes.   
  
"You are a beautiful one, Med-jai." He said softly, trying to make her lose her edge. She did not. She brought up he knee and got him as had as she could in the groin. Even for the undead, this hurt like hell, his face twisted in pain and he tumbled to the side a little, allowing her to throw him off and stand up. He to stood up, eyes filled with hate and rage, sword in hand, he threw himself at her, forcing her back towards the back of the cave, where it dropped off into the water below.   
~~  
Neither of them noticed that Ameera had lost her U.S.N. knife along the way.   
~~  
Travis dropped his sword and dove at Nick; forcing him to drop his own weapon and forcing him back about five feet. Travis, now on top of Nick, wrapped his fingers around Nick's neck and squeezed hard, forcing the air out of his chest with his knee. Nick struggled and got his hands up into Travis's face, digging his thumb into his eyes. Travis yelped and threw himself back, eyes closed in pain. It took him a few seconds to regain himself. This time, Travis grabbed Omar's fallen scimitar and when he dove at Nick, got a nice, somewhat deep gash across nicks chest. Nicked yelped in pain, but if did not stop him, turning to the side; he saw Ameera's fallen knife and dove at it.   
~~  
Ameera and Imhotep her still blocking all the blows they aimed at each other, and now that Ameera was so close to the edge, she had to be careful not to fall back into the water. Imhotep dove at her, knocking both of their weapons to the cave floor and both of them into the water below.   
~~  
The cold water closed around her in an instant. Her full Med-jai robes becoming very heavy on her body. When she came up to the surface, Imhotep was no where to be see. He had fallen into the water with me, right? She thought quickly, before her whole body was forced under water again. Her robes caught on something…maybe a rock, and she couldn't pull them free to get to the surface for air. As her lungs felt like they were going to burst, she franticly tried to untie her robes, finally getting them undone and kicking them off her body. When she got to the surface, she breathed in deeply and grabbed at the sides…she was not the greatest swimmer.   
~~  
Travis brought the scimitar down swiftly, but Nick was still able to get away. He got a good grip around the knife and as Travis dove at him, brought it up right into his chest, the knife sticking in all the way. Travis stumbled back and gasped…looking down at the knife sticking in his chest. He dropped the sword and dropped to his knees. Travis Ripkin looked up at Nick, eyes shinning, mouth agape, breath weird.   
  
"Your no better then the rest of us…" He gasped out, "This is not the end."   
And with that, his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell over, his last breath escaping him. Nick looked down at the dead man, unable to believe it was he who had taken his life away...But his attention was stolen away by a hand reaching up from the edge in the back of the cave, a feminine, tattooed hand.   
~~  
It had taken all of Ameera's strength to climb up the twelve-foot wall that led into the cave. So she was more then relieved when, as she reached up to grab onto something on the floor of the cave, she felt a hand close around hers, and that the hand belonged to Nick O'Connell.  
~~  
Omar punched Steven solid in the nose, blood splattering everywhere. Steven forced him to the ground, bringing his gold knife up high to plunge it into Omar's chest, but a dark blurb slammed into Steven, knocking both him and the knife in different directions. Omar looked over as he jumped up, and now Haris was fighting with Steven. Radhi grabbed the knife and attacked Steven as well, and though Omar couldn't see it, he knew what the warriors were about to do. Steven got in one last punch, before his own gold knife was brought down into his heart. He coughed up a little blood and spit it into the face of Haris, before his breathing stopped and he died.   
  
Omar crossed to the dead man and the warriors, pulling the knife out of his lifeless chest, before sticking it in his belt so he climb back into the cave. When he heard a strange battle cry come form Ameera from inside.   
  
~~  
Ameera fell into the small embrace Nick gave her as he pulled her over the ledge. She was soaking wet but he didn't care.   
"Nick…find…the...spell…now…" She gasped out looking into his eyes. "Find it…read it…now!"  
  
He didn't have time to respond before something hard slammed into the back of his head, knocking him out cold and slumping onto a shocked Ameera.   
  
She looked up into the face of Imhotep, rage burning in her eyes. No one did that to her friends. She stood up, and with a battle cry, dove at Imhotep, slamming into him at the waist and throwing both of them to the ground. In a quick movement, he got his feet under her and kicked up, throwing her over his head and on to her back. She groaned but got back up, almost tripping over the body of Travis. She dove at them again, for both were weapon less, fists tight so she could knock his lights out. But he twisted around and grabbed her, throwing her to the floor and landing on top of her, using all his weight to keep her down, and try as she might, she couldn't break free of his grip.   
  
"Your all wet." He hissed in her ear, "Do you want to know why they should never allow a woman warrior?" He smiled evilly, eyes running over her wet body, the tight black tank top now sticking to her even more, before he leaned down, kissing her harshly.   
  
She struggled and fought, but she could wrench free from his hold on her body or her lips. As they kissed, the still body of Nick O'Connell was being dragged away towards the smaller cave. After a second, Ameera let part of her guard down as she felt herself being pulled deeper and deeper into the creature's kiss.  
  
"AMEERA!" They both heard Omar yell. "WHAT THE…KNIFE!"   
  
This distracted Imhotep, who had grabbed a hold of Ameera's lucky knife and pulled it out of Travis' chest. The knife hung in midair for a second, enough time for Ameera to head butt him, pulled her right arm free, and slam her elbow, then her fist into the creature's face, forcing him back.   
~~  
"Nick…NICK!" He felt his face get slapped rather hard. "Nick! Get the hell up you fool!"  
"Wha…?" Nick opened his eyes and found himself staring into the round face of Martin Adams.   
Martin had been able to sneak around the small battlefield outside and get into the cave unnoticed.   
  
"Get up! That girl needs your help out there!"  
"Ameera!" They heard a voice yell. "What the…knife!"  
"Get up!" Martin pulled Nick to his feet, not caring that he was still rather unsteady from the slight concussion he had just received.   
  
"The spell…"  
"What?" Martin asked, looking at him.   
"There is a small folded up piece of paper in that back-pack right there, you have to get it out."  
Martin nodded and began to pull apart Nick's pack more then it already was.   
  
"Is this it?" He asked, pulling a folded up piece of paper out of a side pocket.   
Nick grabbed it and unfolded it, staring into the rubbing of the book of the living. The words were now slightly smudged, but it would have to do.   
~~  
Omar threw himself onto Imhotep, only to get thrown off again, the blood stained gold knife falling to the floor in a clatter. Ameera dove for the knife, grabbing it, then jumping back up and whipping around to face Imhotep. He looked at the knife in her hand, eyes becoming wide at the sight of the blood on it. He jumped at her, scimitar in hand, swinging the weapon like crazy in an effort to kill her before she had the chance to kill him. She was able to block a few of the blows with the long gold knife, but was unable to jump back as he aimed at her side, resulting in a long cut. She, unaware that she had even been wounded, dropped to the ground and kicked his feet out from under him, causing him to drop to the ground where she dove on top of him, only to again be kicked over his head and land on her back in a grunt. She twisted around and jumped up, leaning back to miss the bow he aimed at her chest.   
  
They were close to the back edge of the cliff again, Omar coming in at one side and Ameera coming in at the other. Imhotep jumped forward in a dive, popping back up and going at Ameera, when they were all stopped in their tracks.   
~~  
A weak voice filled the cave, echoing against the walls. A voice reading strange words…strange, ancient words. Imhotep turned towards the source of the words…and saw Nick and Martin standing on the other side of the cave, Martin holding up a rather weak Nick.   
  
Once Nick was done reading the words from the rubbing, he stood up straight and said the spell over again.   
~~  
Nothing happened to Imhotep, no ghostly chariot came and stole away his soul, no strange light surrounded him, and he just stood there, in shock.   
  
Ameera took her chance and dove at Imhotep, twisting him around and carving a rather deep gash across his chest, but he didn't react or fight back. He dropped the scimitar he was holding and grabbed Ameera's throat, pushing her back over the back edge and back into the water below.   
  
She struggled and grabbed at his wrist, trying to get him to let go of her, but his hold on her was to strong. Imhotep was holding her under the water, squeezing her throat so she could not move or get any air when they had made the plunge.   
  
To Ameera's shock, he started to disappear, his legs turning to powder and drifting away in the water, as is slowly spread up his body.   
Imhotep squeezed a little harder on her neck before leaning in close to her face.   
  
"I am not the only one." He said with an evil look in his eye, before turning to powder completely, disappearing right before her eyes.   
  
That's when the lack of air kicked in and her eyes rolled to the back of her head, everything going black. Slowly, her lifeless body floated to the surface of the water, tipping to the side before breaking the surface, face down.   
~~  
The splash of another body hitting the water forced Ameera's limp body to go back under water, but this body was here to help, wrapping it's arms around her waist and pulling her to the surface, face up.   
  
"Nick!" Omar yelled from the cave. "Is she ok?"  
Nick held his wet face close to hers…no breath was hitting his cheeks. "She isn't breathing!" He yelled as he pulled her to the side of the wall. "You're going to have to help me get her back up there!"   
  
With several grunts and a strength he did not know he had, Nicked somehow got Ameera's limp body up high enough for Omar and Haris to grab her arms, pulling her up and over, onto the floor of the cave. Martin and Radhi helped Nick up the rest of the way as well.   
  
Nick scrambled to Ameera, checking her neck for a pulse; luckily, there was one, just no breaths. Nick tipped her head back and opened her mouth, placing his on hers, and breathing in to her. He breathed for three seconds before coming up for another breath, then repeating. He breathed into her mouth for a total of six times before she coughed and spit up a little bit of water, rolling on to her side, coughing some more.   
  
Ameera straightened out again as Nick pulled her into his arms, resting her on his lap slightly.   
"Did we…did we get him…?" She whispered, a weakness falling over her body.   
"Shhh…don't speak, yes, we got him. We got all of them." Nick said softly, brushing wet strands of hair behind her ear.   
  
She nodded and looked up at the line of men who were kneeling on the other side of her. Omar with his hand over hers, Radhi and Haris smiling weakly, a man with bright red hair and a round face, smiling at her at the end.   
  
"Who the hell…"  
"This is Martin Adams…he works with me, but was with Steven and Trav…um…he was with them."  
"Why?" she hissed.   
"They needed me to read the map they stole from Nicky here. I had nothing else to do with it, I swear…"  
  
"Nicky?" Ameera repeated. "Nicky?"  
"That's what he calls me…" Nick said, silently cursing Martin.   
She smiled and laughed softly, "Nicky…"  
  
"We should get out of here…are there anymore men?" Omar asked, looking at Martin.   
"No, there was only the diggers, but they were all released….what are we going to do about the bodies?"   
  
"He's right…this isn't our ancestors day when they could just leave the bodies…this could cause an international rift…"Nick said, looking at Ameera softly.   
"The…one thing I remember from the one time I met Rick O'Connell…" Ameera said weakly, eyes closed, "Is he told someone, I forget who, to always take at least three sticks of dynamite with them when ever they went off into the desert…who did he tell that to?"  
  
"Me." Nick said softly. "He told that to me, and I listened. Why?"  
"Bring the bodies in here and blow up the entrance, right?" Omar said softly.   
"Right." Ameera said.   
The four men looked at each other.   
  
"I will take her down." Nick said softly. "We can use that boat out there…once we get the driver off."  
"Good idea…you." Omar pointed at Martin. "Help him."  
  
"Yes sir." Martin was rather afraid of the tall Med-jai, but if Nick trusted them…he could to.   
"Can you stand?" Nick asked Ameera.  
  
"Yeah…but not on my own." He helped her up, draping on of her arms across his shoulder and wrapping one arm around her waist. Together, they slowly made their way towards the mouth of the cave, the rest of them following them. Nick, who was still rather weak himself, went down first, then held his arms up for Ameera, who, with the help of Omar and Radhi, ("I can do it myself!") climbed down until Nick could help her the rest of the way. Nick took her in his arms again, forgetting how angry he had been with her before. They stumbled across the sand, both looking out at the boat with a sigh. They were going to have to walk through chest deep water in some points to get out to the boat.   
  
"No…more…water." Ameera moaned, but Nick had other plans. In one solid movement, he swiped her off her feet, holding her in a fireman's hold. He chuckled as she raised an eyebrow at him and began to walk into the water. It took them a while to get out to the boat, because Nick had to go slow, but both were relieved when they reached it. Ameera climbed up first and helped Nick up, then helped Martin in, who had to swim the last part because he was so short. Both men thanked her and Nick led her to a bench under some shade and forced her to lay down.   
  
"I will help you with the driver…"  
"No, you will rest. You did more then the rest of us back there, you are weak."  
"So are you!"  
  
"Shhh. Just rest, I will be a minute." Nick crossed to where the driver of the boat was and dragged him to the end of the boat, where Omar was waiting to take him back to the cave. Omar took his arms and Nick got his legs, and they dragged him back to the beach, where Haris and Radhi were pulling the bodies of the four red & black warriors into the cave.   
  
The boat was mid-sized, a large deck with benches on the sides and a large canopy covering it. There was a small room where the boat was driven from, but there was no glass in the windows in the room. Then a very small deck in the front.   
  
"Why are you here?" Ameera asked Martin, who was sitting on the other side of the boat.  
"They…they wanted my to come with them, because I could read the map they had. I knew nothing of their plans…I swear…nothing!"   
"Don't worry, we believe you. You don't look like someone who would be involved with the bad guys."  
Martin couldn't tell wither or not he was being made fun of, so he didn't say a word after that.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
As said, Travis is based on my older brother, and Steven on his friend. So...I felt kinda bad killing them off. But I know travis wouldnt want to be anyone else but the bad guy....that silly bastard.   
  
Imhotep...could be no more....dont know yet. Depends on my muse. 


	8. Six months!!!

I use a bit from the Dire Strights song, "Brothers in Arms" in this chap. It seemed to fit well for the story line. I dont own the song...etc.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`  
"That the last of them?" Omar asked as he and Nick carried in the body of the driver.   
  
"Yeah, it is." Radhi said softly, looking at the seven bodies at their feet. They had cleared out all their packs, supplies, and weapons. Now all that was left was the seven bodies, laying in a row. It was a sad sight to Nick, who stared at the bodies of his two colleges. He had taken the life of one of them, and would never be able to forgive himself for that.   
"Come on, lets get this over with." Omar said, placing a hand on Nick's shoulder, but he didn't move.   
  
"Now the suns gone to hell, and the moon's riding high. Let me bid you farewell, every man has to die. But it's written in the star light, and ever line on your palm. We're fools to make war, on our brothers in arms." Nick said softly.   
  
The Med-jai didn't bother him, they slowly made their way to the mouth of the cave.   
"I'm sorry." He said, looking at Travis. "I am so sorry." With that, he joined up with the warriors, and climbed down the wall with the rest of them. Omar held a stick of dynamite on his hand and lit it, throwing into the cave, then ran. The rest followed and all ducked when it went off, causing the mouth of the cave to crumble in, closing in the bodies of the seven killed there today.   
  
They all made their way silently to the boat and climbed in. Martin, along with Haris, made their way into the small room and started up the boat. Radhi and Omar both collapsed on the other side of the boat from Ameera, while Nick sat kneeled down next to he, brushing some now damp hair behind her ear.   
  
"Your bleeding." She said softly, looking at his chest. He looked down at the gash across his upper chest.   
"I'll be ok. You are to." He placed his hand next to her own wound. She chuckled softly, "Looks like we will all have scars from this battle."  
  
"Well, you got to have something to remember it by. Here," He handed her the lucky U.S.N. knife, now all nice and clean. "You dropped it back there." She took it with a smile and held it in her hands, slowly turning it over and over. "That saved my life back there, you know."  
  
"Well, it is a lucky knife." She said softly, before handing it back to Nick. "You take it now, I believe I am done with it. You take it back into your family."  
But Nick shook his head and would take the knife. "You are not done with it yet. You keep it, besides, I would never be able to get that through customs."  
  
She smiled and chuckled, then placed the knife on the bench next to her. The boat jumped a little then began moving. She stared into his eyes, wanting to tell him something but not being able.  
  
"Ameera, I am sorry I got mad at you…" He said softly.   
"I am sorry I said the wrong thing…I didn't know what to say, so the wrong thing slipped out."  
"I know." He leaned in and gently kissed her, and this time, she did not push him away or think it was wrong. It was better then kissing Imhotep that's for sure. Everyone on the boat turned to stare at the two kissing, but Omar waved them away, Nick and Ameera had a right to kiss with out everyone staring at them the whole time.   
  
When the kiss broke, they both smiled at each other and stared into the other's eyes. For a long time, no one said anything, and that was just fine. Soon, Omar, Haris, Radhi, Nick, and Ameera fell asleep, leaving Martin to silently take the boat up the river, to where Haris had told him to stop. It took well into the afternoon, but no one mined.   
  
~~  
When they finally got there, Izzy came down to greet them, and helped them haul their supplies and them self's up the long path to where his plane sat.   
"Get everything done?" Izzy asked Nick, as they threw all the packs into the back of the plane.   
"That, and then some." Nick said softly, looking at Ameera.   
"Burn it." Ameera said softly.   
"What?"  
"Burn the boat. Other wise someone will find it and there will be questions."  
  
"Look at what I just found!" Omar said, walking up to them. Everyone turned and stared at what he held in his hands, the black Book of the Dead.  
"Score." Nick said softly, running his hand over the smooth cover.   
  
"There is more." Martin said softly, looking to the large Med-jai. "There is more treasure in the boat that was taken from the pyramid. Including these." He pulled out the set of Golden Tridents. "I took these from the main chamber."  
  
Nick took the tridents in his hands, running his eyes over them slowly. "Evy used these." He said softly. "I know it."  
The warriors looked at each other, and with a large, collective sigh, they walked down the path again, to collect the treasure in the boat. They found so much, gold weapons, small statues of the gods, pieces of the gold walls. It took them a while to clear out the boat of the treasure and haul it up to the air plane to a wide eyed Izzy.  
  
"Is that the last of it?" Ameera asked as Omar sat down a large backpack filled with various things.   
"That's the very last of it. Right?" He shot a look at Martin.   
"Yes…that's all of it."  
  
"Good. Burn it now." Ameera turned around and made her way slowly up the path to the plane, as Omar kicked over a can of gas, climbed off the boat, and threw a lit match onto the deck of the boat. He walked away as the first flames appeared.   
  
~~   
Radhi and Haris climbed into the very back bench seat of the plane, each taking the very ends and stretching out as best they could. Omar fell onto the middle one, barely able to keep his sore body up any longer. Nick and Ameera took the front bench seat, Ameera sat against the window, legs stretched out a little, and Nick had laid down on the bench, laying back into her. She wrapped one arm around him and looked back at her cousin and her friends. All three of them half asleep. Omar smiled weakly at Ameera and winked at her. She smiled and looked down then back at him, then mouthed, "Thank you."  
  
Martin took the front with Izzy the third. The plane, started then jumped a little, before turning around and taking off from the cliff. This time none of the Med-jai even cared that they had taken off, they were mostly all asleep in the back. Nick dozed off, but Ameera leaned her head against the window and looked back at the Blue Nile and Ahm Shere as they flew away. She could see a large pit where the Golden Pyramid was, and she made a mental note to have the sixth tribe fix that.   
  
Ameera Bay was somewhat content. Granted, she had had one hell of a day, and would no doubt be sore as hell for the next week, but she was still content. It was all over, the creature was gone, she was leaving Ahm Shere for good, and she was with a man who made her heart fill with joy.   
  
~~  
When Ameera opened her eyes, the sky was dark around the plane. Looking around, she saw that everyone else in the plane, except her and of course Izzy was sleeping soundly. She smiled as she looked down at Nick, who was lying in her lap.   
"How much longer, Izzy?" She asked softly, causing the pilot to turn around with a start.   
"About ten more minutes, I thought I would take you straight to your tribe. Is that ok with you?"  
"Fine…you do know where it is?"  
"Yes, I have flown over it enough times."  
  
Ameera nodded and leaned her head back against the window. With a sigh, she turned back to Omar, Radhi, and Haris, all of who were sleeping the day away. Then she leaned down and kissed Nick softly. After a second, he breathed in deeply and began to kiss her back, smiling but not opening his eyes when the kiss broke.   
  
"To bad I can't wake up like that everyday." He said softly, finally opening his eyes and looking at her.   
"Yeah, to bad." She said with a smile. "How you feeling?"  
"Like I was dropped from a ten story building. You?"  
"About the same. We set down in about ten minutes…I guess he is taking us straight to my home."  
"How?"  
"I have no idea." She said as the plan began its decent.   
  
~~  
"What do you think that is?"   
Two Med-jai warriors were sitting on their horses near a long cliff, about a mile from their tribe.   
"It looks like a plane…a plane that is about to land."  
The two looked at each other.  
  
~~  
And indeed the plane did land on the long cliff, coming to a stop twenty feet away from the two young and now scared shit-less, warriors.   
  
"Looks like some of your friends were expecting us." Izzy said, turning to Ameera.   
"Must you come down so hard?" Omar asked, sitting up and holding his head.   
"Which one of us wants to go talk to the welcoming party?" Ameera asked with a grunt, as she pushed herself into a proper sitting position.   
  
"I will." Radhi said as he stumbled out of his seat. "Haris, care to join me?"  
Haris just grunted as they pushed open the plane door and both fell out of it.   
Nick, now sitting, placed a hand on Martin's shoulder. "Don't worry…these are good people. They will take us in, give us beds, and feed us."  
  
"Whatever…" Martin looked out the dirty front windows. "Where are we?"  
"We are about sixty miles out side of Cairo." Omar said, attempting to pull himself out of the plane, but he to feel out of the door with a rather loud cuss word.   
  
At this time, Haris and Radhi came back and told them that the two warriors were going to get more horses and would be back in about twenty minutes. Ameera nodded and stood up as best she could. Nick made his way out of the plane and held out his arms to help her out.   
"Thank god." She muttered as she stepped out of the plane. "We're home."   
  
About fifteen minutes later, a large group of Med-jai came riding up to then, extra horses in tow.   
"My Lady!" A voice rang out.   
"Baber!" Ameera's face lit up as she crossed to the first horse that reached them. Baber, the high elder of the Med-jai, dismounted and hugged his goddaughter.   
"Welcome back."  
"Thank you, it is good to be back."  
  
Baber broke his hug with Ameera, and turned to Haris and Radhi. "My sons..."   
With the reliefe only a father could know, he embraced his two sons, holding each one of them tightly and telling them how happy he was they returned safely.   
  
"Have we succeeded?" He asked, turning back to Ameera.   
"Yes, the creature is no more."  
"Allah be praised. Come, let's get all of you home, I am sure you all must be very tired."  
"We have done nothing but slept all day, my friend."   
  
Baber laughed and glided Ameera to one of the empty horses. He helped her mount it, then mounted his own horse. The rest followed suit all mounting their respected horses.   
"Baber, we bring with us a very special gift that has been out of Med-jai hands for a very long time." Ameera said softly.   
  
"You don't mean…"  
"Yes. The Book of the Dead is back in the possession of the Med-jai."  
"That is some of the best news I have ever heard." He snapped his fingers at the Med-jai who were already on horses, who rode over to the plane and unloaded their bags.  
  
"Izzy, I, and my people, thank you greatly for your help. It will not go unnoticed." Ameera called from her steed, once again becoming the Queen of the Med-jai.   
Izzy smiled and waved his hand, "No Problem!"  
  
With that, the group of Med-jai and Englishmen rode off into the desert night.   
"You must send word to the sixth tribe that they have to go to Ahm Shere and fill in the large hole that was dug. They must do this quickly, for if anyone were to find it, they would find the half uncovered pyramid of the Scorpion King." Ameera told Baber as he searched through a side bag on his saddle.   
  
"Here," He said, pulling out an even smaller bag. "Eat this."  
She took the bag and opened it, finding coconut pieces inside. "Thank you, I have not eaten much today." She took a large piece and handed the bag to Omar, who did the same and passed it on.   
It took them ten minutes to get to the Med-jai City, Nick and Martin were led away to their lodgings, as Ameera and Omar walked to the Elders Tent.   
  
"We can do this tomorrow morning, Ameera." Baber said as they all sat down at the long table with the other elders.   
"No, we will do it now, while it is fresh in our minds. Do you mind Omar?" She turned to her second in command, he shook his head. "Very well then, it all started this morning, when Omar spotted a boat coming up the river…"  
  
~~  
"Ameera…Ameera?" The voice rang in her ear.   
"Go away…" She turned over and stuck a pillow over her head.   
"Ameera Lana Bay, get up right now. It is already past noon!"  
But she didn't move. With a sigh, Muriel grabbed her daughter's foot and gave it a good solid yank, pulling her head out of the pillow.   
  
"Mom…there better be a damn good reason why you are waking me up." Ameera said with a yawn, sitting up and stretching her arms.   
"There is a good reason, and it is that it is already the afternoon. Get up!"  
  
"Mom, I got here at two in the morning, I didn't get to sleep till six. I think I need more sleep."  
"Nick told me you did nothing but sleep yesterday, you need no more sleep."  
"I did do something more then sleep yesterday, and when did you talk to Nick?"  
  
"About an hour ago when I treated his wounds, and now it is your turn. You have ten minutes to get to the medical tent before I come and drag you there."  
"Yes mom…"  
Muriel smiled and stood up, crossing to the door. "I'm happy your home safely, dear. I was worried about you."  
  
"Thanks mom. I am happy to be home safely to." As her mother left, Ameera flopped back onto the bed, staring up at her ceiling. Was it really only the day before that she had fought the creature? It seemed like years ago to Ameera, who sighed and got up. Her whole body was sorer then she had ever felt it, and it was hard for her to cross to her chest of cloths and change. She had been wearing the same pair of pants and tank top for the past two and a half days and it was a joy to peel them off her body. Luckily, for a reason she did not know, someone had retrieved her Med-jai robe from the pool in the cave, so that, the pants, and the tank top would go in the vault, just like her family's robes. It took her a while to change into a new set of clothes for her body was so sore, but she finally got it done. Slipping on a thin pair of normal slippers and pulling her hair onto a loose bun on the top of her head. She did not wear her robes and felt no need to put them on. Today was going to be a calm day of rest.   
  
Crossing the city to the medical tent, she smiled and waved at many people, some stopping to welcome her home, others bowing their heads in respect.   
"Sit down dear." Her mom said as she entered the tent and crossed to one of the cots. "This shouldn't take long."  
  
Ameera sat down and let her mom look her over and clean the many scrapes and cuts she had received.   
"That's going to leave a scar." Muriel said as she cleaned the wound on her side.  
"A memory of battle." Ameera said softly, flinching as her mom put a cold liquid of some kind on her side.   
  
"You got pretty beat up dear, I would hate to see the other guy."  
" 'The other guy' didn't make it out alive."  
"What was it like dear?"  
"One of the hardest battles I have ever had to face. The man I fought…the creature…was a skilled fighter. He fought like a madman, and he would not give up."  
  
"What was he like?"  
"I think he knew he wasn't going to make it out alive…but that he didn't want the rest of us to get out alive as well. He was a handsome man, I will give you that…and he was strong, but he also seemed sad." When Ameera stopped talking, she looked up at her mother, who was staring at her with tears in her eyes. "Mom? What's wrong?"  
  
Her mom took a deep breath and smiled through the few tears that had slipped down her cheek. "I am just so thankful you came back to me. I was so worried that you were not going to make it out alive." She placed her hand on her daughter's cheek. "I am so proud of you Ameera, and you father would be so proud as well."  
  
Ameera smiled softly and pulled her mom into a tight hug. "I know mom, I know."  
After a few seconds, the hug broke and Muriel handed Ameera a glass of water. She took it and began to drink as her mother asked, "So what's it like to kiss Nick?"  
Ameera spit the water half way across the room and began coughing.   
  
"WHAT?!"  
"Now, now dear. That was uncalled for!"  
"The question!?"  
"No! The spitting, here, give me that glass and answer my question!"  
"What makes you think I kissed Nick?"  
  
"A mother knows these things!"  
"I am going to kill those three…"Ameera muttered, shaking her fist towards the tent door.  
"No one told me dear, I just know these things. Is it serious?"  
"What?"  
  
"Don't play dumb! I know there is something going on between you two."  
Ameera sighed and gave in. "I don't know if it is, I kinda hope it will get serious. I really like him."  
"And my question?"  
  
"It is really nice to kiss him mom, in fact, he is the greatest kisser in the world!" She could no longer hold in the sarcasm.   
"Don't sass me."  
  
"He is wonderful in every way mom. I hope I get to spend more time with him."  
Muriel's smile faded and she looked at her child softly.   
"About that…dear…"  
  
~~  
"Come in!" Nick called to the persistent knocking on his door. A second later Ameera appeared in the bedroom doorway, a look of pure shock on her face.   
"You're leaving?" She gasped.   
  
Nick looked up at her from the bag he had been packing on his bed. "Um…yeah. Tomorrow morning."  
"Why?" Ameera couldn't believe what she was hearing.  
"I have to get back to London in two days. I have to go on another one of the museums traveling shows."  
  
"How long?"  
"Six months." He said softly, turning his head away from her.   
"Six months? You're going to be gone for six months?" The news hit her like a bullet.   
"I will be gone for six months…we are taking the exhibit to France, Germany, Italy, China, Russia, and somewhere else…I really forget where the last place is. But like before, we will be there for a month in each country."  
  
"Six months?"  
Nick crossed to Ameera, who was standing in the doorway, mouth agape, and eyes wide. He took her in his arms and kissed the top of her head gently.   
"I'm so sorry, I should have told you before."  
  
"Why do you have to go? Can't you send someone else?"  
"Ameera, two of the four curators of the Ancient Egypt exhibit were killed yesterday…there is no one else to send!"  
"Martin is going with you?"  
  
"Sadly, yes." Nick said with a smile. "It will be ok Ameera…six months isn't that long of a time."  
"Yes it is!" She pushed him away from her. "Its half a year…do you know how long six months pass by out in the desert? It's going to feel like six years!"  
  
"Ameera…I am so sorry. I am. If I could switch with someone and not go, I would. But they need at least two people to go…and it is going to be hard enough to explain to them that Steven York and Travis Ripkin are not coming back to work. Ever!"  
  
"By the way, how are you going to explain their absence?"  
"I am going to write a letter explaining that they are both going to stay in Egypt because they fell in love and will never again return to London."  
  
"Fall in love…with each other?"  
"No!" Nick laughed. "No…with women!"  
"And you think this will go over with the museum?"  
"I hope so. I can't just not say anything. I would have to think that they would notice that two of their curators are missing."  
  
"And what about their families?"  
"Steven, from what I was told, disowned his family and Travis didn't have any."  
Ameera nodded as she crossed to the bed and sat down on it. "Six months?"  
  
He crossed to her and kneeled on the floor in front of her. "It will pass by quickly, I promise you. I will only be gone for six months…then I will come back to you and we can start whatever life we are going to have together."  
  
"Six months?"  
"Six months."  
"Six months…."  
Nick chuckled and leaned up, kissing her. When the kiss broke, Ameera smiled. "I think I can handle six months."  
  
"Good." Nick smiled and pushed a few lose strands of hair behind her ear. "God…this is like having to cut the greatest date I have ever had short. I don't want to go Ameera…I really don't. But I have to…there is no one else to go."  
  
"I understand Nick…it just…sucks that I am not going to see you for six months. I mean we are just really getting to know each other!"  
"Sucks?" He said, eyebrow raised.   
"Shut up."  
  
"Hey, we still have the rest of the day today, and if you go with me to Cairo…we will have even more time. What do you say?"  
"I would love to go to Cairo with you." She said with a smile, pulling him in for another kiss. 


	9. Ardeth & Toby

Again, I use a song I dont own. This time, it is "run to the water" by Live. Aslo, this is the last chapter and Ardeth shows up in this one. I hoped you, like my story...I have 2 more Nick & Ameera stories I want to write....  
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The rest of the day was spent in Nick's company, laughing and talking about their lives. Everyone noticed the strange behavior of their Queen…she hardly ever acted like this. They practiced battled in the training section in the back of town, ate together, and were never away from the each other for the entire day.   
  
"If only you knew what it was like to be me, Nick. Everyone thinks it would be so grand to be the leader of these people…but it really isn't. I am constantly having to prove myself to them and it is even harder being a woman and having to be their leader."  
"I think you did prove yourself capable to them. I mean…after what we went through…"  
Ameera and Nick were staring at the large bon fire in the middle of town. It was late at night and most of the Med-jai had gone to bed, but a few still milled around the city.   
  
"You know what Omar told me today at diner? He said that it was pure coincidence that we killed the creature…because if we had not used that gold knife that had killed Steven…he would have never died."  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"The spell to bring the creature back from the underworld consisted of the use of someone's blood. Their blood had to be entered into the creatures body…and the only way to have killed him after being brought back, was to use the same weapon used to draw the blood in the first place, kill the man whose blood was used, then kill the creature."  
Nick looked at her with a blank stare. "And…um…how do we know this?"   
  
"Omar, Radhi and Haris took the Book of the Dead to the Med-jai vault today, and they did some reading through the Book of the Living."  
Nick nodded slowly. "We really don't know all that is in those books, do we?"  
"No, we do not. At least now, we have then both in our possession, and that's all that matters."  
"I hope that's not all that matters." He said, leaning over to kiss her quickly.   
  
"Well…it's not the only thing…" She said with a smile. "Sing to me."  
"What?"  
"Sing me a song…I love your singing voice. Sing to me."  
Nick chuckled.   
  
"Oh desert speak to my heart, oh woman of the earth. Maker of children who weep for love  
maker of this birth, 'til your deepest secrets are known to me, I will not be moved. I will not be moved"  
  
He looked down and saw that she was already asleep.   
  
~~  
When Ameera opened her eyes, she was not sitting next to Nick in her town, she was in a strange jungle. She could hear birds chirping through the trees and the sound of running water was coming from somewhere below her. She was sitting on a tree that had tipped over and from behind her, she heard something coming towards her through the foliage.   
Turning quickly, she saw the figure that stepped out of the jungle and cross to her, sitting down next to her on the tree.   
  
The man that sat down was tall and handsome. His dark brown eyes staring right into her own, his dark brown hair just like hers. His face touched with the same sort of tattoos she and all the other Med-jai wore with pride.   
"Hello Meera."  
  
There was only two people in the world who have ever called her that, Andrea and her great-grandfather, Ardeth Bay.  
"Papa?" She gasped out, staring into his face. It was him all right…although a much younger version then the man she had known, but it was him.   
  
Ardeth smiled at Ameera softly, looking her over. "You look so well Meera…"  
"Papa…what are you doing here?"  
Ardeth chuckled and reached out one of his large hands, stroking her cheek. "Just coming by for a visit."  
  
Ameera fell into his arms in a tight embrace, it had been so long since she had felt one of his hugs, and this one did not disappoint.   
"Meera…I can not begin to tell you how proud of you we all are. Your father has been beaming for the past two days straight. I am afraid that his face is going to stick like that for good."  
  
"Daddy? Is he here?" She pushed herself away from him a little, turning her head in every direction, looking for the face of her father.   
"He is not here with us, no, but he is always at your side, in spirit." Ardeth's voice had a slight angelic ring to it, and it seemed to echo around her.   
  
"Papa…where are we?"  
"Ahm Shere…how it looked when I came here. Although…this Ahm Shere does not have the pygmies, be happy about that."  
Ameera laughed.   
  
"We have something in common now Meera, we have both seen the creature. What we don't have in common, is you had the chance to fight him, I did not."  
"Believe me, you weren't missing much. In fact, be lucky you didn't have to fight him, I'm going to be bruised for the next year."  
It was Ardeth's turn to laugh.   
  
"Papa…there was something he said to me right be fore he…um…died. I guess is the word."  
"I know what you mean."  
"Well…he said, 'I'm not the only one.' What did he mean by that?"  
Ardeth gave her a blank look.   
  
"Could it be possible that our ancestors preformed the Hom-dai on someone else?"  
"It is possible, but I have never heard of it. The only one I ever knew of who had that done was the creature himself."  
"I wish I knew what he meant by that…"  
  
"Don't wish it, Meera, it will only make your brain hurt. He is gone now…there is no way he could ever come back to this earth. Let him go, he is now a memory, a fairy tale to tell your children and grandchildren and maybe even great-grandchildren." He lightly pushed in the tip of her nose with one long finger. "Do not worry about the creature or the Hom-dai, it is nothing more then a story now."  
  
"I know papa, I know." She sat for a minute and just stared at him. "Is this how you looked when you came to Ahm Shere?"  
"Yes."  
"No wonder Emily fell in love with you."  
"That was two years before I met her…but thank you. I will take that as a compliment. She says 'hi' by the way."  
  
"Oh she does?"  
"Yes, they all send you their love."  
Ameera laughed but could not hide the tears that were forming in her eyes.  
  
"Are you real?" She said through her tears. "Are you really there…really you? Or are you just a part of my mind that is messing with my dreams?"  
Ever so gently, Ardeth reached out and wiped away her tears. "I am real, I am really here, and no, I am no a part of your head. It's me, Meera, it's truly me."  
  
Ameera laughed through a small sob and controlled her tears the best she could. "Papa…how did you know that Emily was the one for you?"  
"I knew the second I met her. I felt something in my heart that I had never felt before. I just knew I was meant to spend every waking moment with her in my life." He looked her over. "You feel that with him, don't you?"  
  
Ameera sat back a little and stared out into the vast jungle. "I don't know what I feel with him. I knew he is someone I am supposed to have in my life…but I don't know in what way. But I do feel something for him…in my heart."  
  
"Well, we Med-jai are lucky because we have always known who we were meant to spend our life's with. We never have had to go through the misfortune of dating…when we met the person we were meant to be with. We spent our lives with them. That was one reason it took me so long to find my heart and soul in Em. Now you are feeling something with Nick…and if you were meant to be with him, you will be."  
"Papa…you know your stuff."  
  
"Well, they don't call me the greatest King of the Med-jai for nothing." Ardeth chuckled. "Meera, I wish I could tell you it will all get easier, I wish I could tell you its smooth sailing from here on in, but I can't. It wont get easier…the deeper you get into the life of a warrior, the more you will want to throw yourself into a pit of scarabs. So you must keep your faith in yourself…because that is what will get you through the thick of it. My father taught me that, and I taught Tom that, Tom taught Ahmad, Ahmad taught you…you too will teach someone that. That is why the past five generations have been the best for the Med-jai. Yeah…the creature came back three times, but it only made us stronger. Meera, you will always be surrounded by your loved ones; we will always be at your shoulder, helping you get by. So you will never be alone."  
  
Ameera fell into another one of Ardeth's tight embraces. "And when things get really bad, my child, you can always have our comfort food." He said softly into her ear.   
"A piece of bread with butter." She laughed. "And the one thing that made us mad about our comfort food?"  
"If the bread wasn't buttery enough." Ardeth laughed.   
  
"Papa…when will it get easier?"  
"When your child takes over as leader. Yet even then, it is hard to watch them go off and do what you did."  
"So it never will?"  
"Never, but that is the fun of it. And if always remember one thing, it will seem easier."  
"What one thing?"  
  
"You went up against the creature once, and you killed him for good. I let him out twice, and was unable to kill him both times."  
"Yeah, but you had bigger things on your mind, like fighting the Army of Anubis."  
"Not the first time, I was to busy…well...being knocked out."  
  
Ameera laughed and stared into the soft brown eyes of her favorite relative. "Yeah…but you let the O'Connell's make their way into the Med-jai history, and that was very nice of you."  
"Yeah, they still tease me about it to this day." Ardeth turned and looked out into the jungle, the light was beginning to fade into a dusk setting. "I have to go soon Meera, you are going to wake up soon and start your day."  
  
"No…I want to stay here and be with you."  
"You are never with out me."  
"Will I ever see you again? Like this?"  
  
"Tell ya what, if you ever want to see me again, or you father, or anyone of us, just think about us as you fall asleep and tell us you need to talk. Then, we will be here; I will be here, in your dreams. And we will always be with you at your side. Ok?"  
  
"Ok." Ameera watched as her great-grandfather stood up and smoothed out his Med-jai robes. "Papa, a few more things, the night before this all started, I dreamt about your encounters with the creature and the Army of Anubis…was what I saw true?"  
  
"Yes, you saw first hand what I went through. I wanted you to see it, it gave you strength, but you woke up at the wrong time. Right after the Anubis Army was charging us, the second the first one got to us, they all burst into sand. It was one of the neatest things I have ever experienced. Of course, I had sand in places I never wanted it…but that's what you get when you live in the desert. What's the second thing?"  
  
"I saw the creatures resurrection, was that also true?"  
"Yes. Although that was Des`demona's work, not me." He saw the puzzled look in her eyes. "Des`demona is the protector of the Med-jai…every leader in history has come face to face with her, and you will to one day. It is her job to warn us of the bad things, and she too will come to you in your dreams."  
  
Ameera also stood up and smoothed out her robes.   
"One more thing, it was not Rick who made those maps to the hidden places of the desert. It was Evy. But he forced her to tell everyone he had done it, just in case they ever got in trouble with them. So his beloved Evy would never get hurt because of them. Good man, he is. Always looking out for his wife…"  
  
He placed his hands on Ameera's shoulders and held her at arms length, looking her over.   
"Your father is so proud of you, Ameera. He talks about you nonstop. You should really hear him; 'My daughter kicked the creatures ass!' it is the funniest thing to see. Him walking up to everyone and telling them that."  
"That sounds like my father."  
  
"He sends the most love out of all of us, he misses you and your family so much it hurts him."  
Her eyes filled with tears again at the thought of her father. "I know…and we miss him to. Send him my love?"  
"Although I don't have to, I will. He will come to you one of these nights." Ardeth once again hugged Ameera, as she breathed in his scent deeply.   
  
"Will I remember any of this?"  
"In your heart and soul, you will, but not in your clear memory. You will remember my advice, and you will use it, other wise I will have to come back and have another talk with you."  
"That cant be that bad." Ameera said through her tears. He took her face in his hands and leaned down, kissing her forehead softly.   
  
"I love you Ameera and I am proud of you. Don't ever forget what I have told you, I will always be at your side. We all will. We all love you, I love you."  
"I love you to, Papa. I love all of you to."   
She stared into his eyes for one last second, and he was the last thing she saw before waking up.  
  
~~  
Ameera opened her eyes slowly, not wanting to disturb the image of his face. Although when she opened her eyes fully, and took her first blink of the day, her memory of the dream faded, leaving her feeling happy and calm, but also slightly sad. She knew her dream was special, but could not remember the details of it. All she could remember, is the feeling that she was not alone.   
  
A couple of tears slipped down her face slowly and she brushed them away. Slowly sitting up, she saw that she was in her bedroom, although she had fallen asleep next to Nick outside…he must have carried me in. She thought as she got up for the day, stretching and making her way to her chest of cloths. She had yet another ride to Cairo today, but this time, it wouldn't be all that bad of one.   
  
The morning was cool as she crossed to the city kitchen, sitting down next to Andrea.   
"Morning!" She said happily.   
"Morning!" Her rather pregnant friend said with a smile. "How you feeling, Meera?"  
"Better then I have felt in a very long time, Andi."  
"Why?"  
  
"I don't know…I am just...content."  
"Could it be because of a certain Englishman you came home with the other day?"  
"Maybe." Ameera giggled.   
"I thought Queens don't giggle."  
"Shut up Andi."  
  
"I also thought you found him, 'rude and arrogant'."  
"I still find him rude and arrogant, but also handsome and fun to be around."   
"Any one I know?" Another voice came up, causing both women to spin in their seats.   
"Morning, Nicky." Ameera said with a smile.   
"A good morning to you, Meera." He said as he leaned down and kissed her cheek. Ameera blushed slightly and smiled.   
  
"Shut up Andi." She said through her smile.  
"I didn't say anything!"  
"You were going to!"  
"Only I can call her 'Meera'."  
"Ardeth called me it to!"  
"Yeah, but now only I can. Find another name, Nicky."   
  
Nick laughed as he sat down next to Ameera.   
"Ok, ok, I will just for you, Andrea."  
"Thank you."  
"You ready?" He asked Ameera softly, staring into her eyes.  
"Yeah. Just about."  
  
"You going somewhere?" Andrea asked.   
"I am taking him into Cairo."  
"Again? Why? You just got back!"  
"He has to leave for London soon, he has other plans." Ameera's smile melted a bit. "But, I get to spend two more days with him, so…all is well."  
  
Andrea shook her head at the two. "Who are you and what the hell has he done with my best friend?"  
Ameera looked at her best friend.   
"Right, 'shut up Andi.' I know you to well, Merra." Andrea said with a laugh.   
  
~~  
"Ready?" Nick said, watching as Ameera tied her turban around her head.   
"Yeah, we have to get going. We have taken enough time as it is." She smiled softly. Her father had once told her that love makes every Med-jai soft, and she was finding this to be true. It was midmorning, and she knew if they didn't leave now, they never will.   
Nick smiled and leaned over to kiss her. Since they were standing in the stables, they were rather unnoticed by the rest of the town. But his lips just barley touched hers when, "AMEERA!"   
Omar called through the town.   
  
"In the stables!" She yelled out, shaking her head. A second later, her cousin and second in command appeared on the stables, looking out of breath.   
"What's going on?" She asked, by the look in his eyes, she could tell that she really didn't want to hear it. After a minute of catching his breath, he began.   
  
"I know you are set to go in to Cairo...but I think you should stay here. There are people at Humanaptra, LOTS of people."  
"What are you saying to me Omar? Because it is making no sense."  
  
"There is a massive group of people at Humanaptra, must be fifty or more. The strange thing is, they look like half of them are a camera crew. They got all this equipment and stuff."  
"And they are at Humanaptra?"  
"Yes…I think they are going to make a…what's the word…"  
  
"Documentary?" Nick threw in.  
"Yeah, I think they are going to document the City of the Dead."  
  
Ameera's hand found its way to her face as she let out a long sigh. It was always something!  
"We can't let them do that…it would create a whole new interest in the city…dammit!" She threw her hand down in a furry. "It's always something!"  
"I'm sorry, Ameera, but I think you should stay here for this."  
"I know, I know…" She turned to Nick who was watching on with sad eyes. "Nick…I…"  
  
"It's ok, Ameera, I understand. You have to do your duty…it's ok."  
"No, it is not!" She turned to Omar. "Give us a minute."  
"Of course." He said with a quick bow of the head, before leaving them to their peace.  
"Nick…I really want to take you, but…"  
"Hey! I understand! You have to go protect Humanaptra…and that is what you always have to do. I understand…its ok. We can just have someone else take me to Cairo."  
  
"But I wanted to go with you. I wanted to spend these next two days with you! Not chasing off some fools from that city!" She threw her hands up with a sigh. "I just hate that this is coming between us."  
  
"Hey, don't worry about it! What's two days apart?"  
"Two days added to the six months!"  
"Listen." He said softly, coming in closer to her. "I'll tell you what, in six months, after all this work for the museum is done with, I will come back to Cairo. And the way you will know I am back is I will have my younger sister, Cindy, throw a party and invite you. So, that way, you will have something to look forward to over these long months…our first date."  
  
She laughed softly, feeling her anger melt away. "You got yourself a deal, O'Connell."  
Their lips met in a soft kiss. Nick wrapping his arms around her back, holding her close to his body.   
  
"Think a kiss like that could hold you over for the next few months?"  
"No." She said, breathlessly.   
"Ok." He pulled her into another, deeper, longer, kiss.   
"Would that?"  
"Maybe." She looked down from his eyes. "I wish I could go with you…but I have to do this. If they get any amount of usable film…we will have a very busy tourist season on our hands."  
  
"I understand, really. You go off and do you Med-jai thing and I will go off and do my curator thing…and in a little while, we will meet up again and everything will be happy again."  
"Ok." She took his hand and led him out of the stable, to where Omar, Haris, and Radhi were waiting a short distance away.  
  
"Radhi, Haris, would you be so kind as to take Nick to…"  
"It would be our honor, Lady Ameera." They both said at the same time.   
"Thank you." She smiled sweetly at them. "I appetite it. Go get your horses ready…we will be a few minutes. Omar, excuse us."   
  
The two warriors walked off to the stable as Ameera and Nick made their way to the privacy of her home.   
"Well, I guess this is it." Nick said softly, staring into her eyes.   
"Just for now. We will see each other in a little while." She said with a bright smile.   
"You got the idea…" He kissed her again.   
  
"Nick…I have no idea how to explain to you what this past week has meant to me."  
"I can see it in your eyes, so you don't have to say anything."  
"I have to say this…Thank you."  
"For?"  
"For…making it so that words could not describe this week."  
  
He laughed a little and smiled softly. "That's what I'm hear for."  
They kissed again, this time a soft knock and a soft voice interrupted them.   
"Ready when you are, Nick." The soft voice of Radhi called in.   
"Ready?" She asked him.   
"Ready." He said back, reaching out his hand to her. She took it and together, they walked to the city entrance.   
  
"Remember," Nick said softly, "we have a date in six months, and nothing is going to keep me from it. Ok?"  
"Like wise."  
When they got to the city entrance, they found four horses, the two Med-jai sitting on top of their own, Martin sitting on another, one waiting to be mounted.   
  
Nick, eyes sad at the thought of leaving Ameera behind for so long, turned to her and placed both hands on her sides.   
"Is this it?" She asked softly, forgetting she was in public view of her people.   
"No, this is not it. We will see each other in a little while, remember?"  
She nodded softly. "Be careful, Nick. Always."  
"You to." His smile widened, "Six months, we have a date."  
"I will be counting the days."   
  
Nick, forgetting that they were in public as well, said softly,   
"I need to remember this, so baby give me just one kiss. And let me take a long last look before we say good bye."   
And with that, he took that one last kiss, as all that were watching mouths dropped to the ground. Could their leader really be kissing the O'Connell boy? Oh, the gossip that would spread over the next few days.   
  
But Ameera didn't care about the gossip; she only cared about the kiss and the fact that it would be the last one from the man she was beginning to love. As the kiss neared its ending, they both opened their eyes and looked at each other, seeing only the others eyes staring into their own.   
Then, the kiss broke and with out another word, Nick mounted his horse. With one last look at her, to fill his memory, he rode of silently. Her trusted Med-jai warriors following him. No one in town seemed to speak, for a long minute no one dared to move.   
  
Ameera felt the strong but comforting hand on her shoulder and looked over at Omar with sad eyes.   
"Ameera…"  
"Don't…its ok. I'm ok." She smiled weakly at him. "Give me a few minutes alone, and then we will set out for Humanaptra." She saw him nod out of the corner of her eye as she turned and walked off towards her house. Trying to force her tears to stay deep inside of her.  
  
With a sad sigh, she opened her door and stepped in, hoping for peace and quiet. Sadly, she did not get that. Standing in her living room, looking at the pictures on her shelves, was a tall Med-jai, about six foot one,   
  
"I was wondering when you were going to show." He said in a thick voice, not unlike the one that belonged to Ardeth Bay.  
"Have no fear, when ever things couldn't get worse, you always show up."  
  
"Is that any way to treat a guest?" He asked, turning to face her. His bright brown eyes shining and an amused smile on his face.   
"No, that is the way to treat you." She shot back. But she let out a long sigh and couldn't hold it up any longer. "I'm not in the mood for this now, Toby. Please…"   
  
"Come here." Toby said, reaching his arms out. She crossed to them and fell into his tight embrace. "It's ok, I'm here now."  
"Why are you here? And how did you get in?"  
"I came for a visit after hearing about your little adventure, and I came in through the back."  
Ameera laughed softly, feeling safe and right again in his arms.   
  
"So, who was he?" Toby said softly.   
"You saw?"  
"For the most part, yes. Who was he?"  
"Nick O'Connell."  
"O'Connell? Well, that makes it more interesting."  
  
"Still not in the mood for it, Toby. Please, do me a favor, shut up."  
"What ever you say, Queen." Toby held her out at arms length. "Hi sister."  
She smiled warmly, "Hi brother. I have missed you."  
"Not as much as I have missed you." He noticed the tear forming in her eye. "You going to be ok?"  
  
"No. I'm not. The man I have found myself falling in love with has just left for six months, and I couldn't even go with him to Cairo…"  
"Hey…hey. You will see him again. Six months isn't that long of a time…"  
  
She shot him a dirty look.   
"Ok, so it is a long time. You can do it, you're strong!"  
This caused Ameera to laugh. "Thank you Toby…"  
"Any time, Meer." He smiled brightly at his older sister.   
  
"How are things in the second tribe?"  
"I will tell you later. What was it like battling the creature?"  
"I will tell you later."   
Toblis Bay smiled brightly. "Well, we will have much time to talk about such things. It seems that you're not busy for the next six months!"  
  
"Yeah...shame isn't it? I am going to be bored of my ass…" She looked into his eyes, feeling a feeling of joy fall over her again. "Hey, we are about to go scare some people down at Humanaptra, want to come? It's going to be a fun one, they have a camera crew with them!"  
  
Toby's face lit up as she walked to the front door with his sister. "Sounds great! It's been to long since I have scared visitors from the city. Do I get to draw my sword?"  
"Sure. Why the hell not?"   
  
Brother and sister walked towards the stables, filling the air around them with laughter that siblings shared. Once again, for the people of the Med-jai, everything was right.   
  
~FIN~  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`  
So...thats is. Like? I hope so. As said, I got two more N&A stories I want to write soooooo bad. in them, you learn about Ameera's past history with another Med-jai, the Fajarah (See The girl and the stone) come back, and something happends to a prime character. (I like being evil to my characters.) And much more.   
  
The ending of this story...I didnt want Nick and Ameera to be together...hence...their not. I mean...it would suck to fall in love with someone and have them have to leave for so long. Though N&A will get together, some day, not today.   
  
Toby...was the last thing that I thought about for this story. It seemed right that she be with her brother at the end of the story. and he was named after Toby, from The West Wing. I like the name.   
  
Finally, the dream with Ardeth....I always thought him to be a family man. And I feel that he would love Ameera so much, and be so proud of her. In the next stories, we will meet Ahmad, her father, who is very much like Ardeth. Maybe throw in some adult Tom. Ardeth, in my eyes, is only a hard warrior when he has to be. We saw the hard ass warrior in The Mummy, and though soo sexy, I like to see him on the softer side. We did get to see that softer side in a few bits of The Mummy Returns(Comes out Oct 2, on video!!!!) I like that side.   
  
Here endeth the story. I hope you, who read it, liked it. Not many have read it so far. Oh well, we cant all have hits, I guess.  
  
Lime Jello, and Thanks fore reading & revewing my story. Maggi 


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